A NEWPORT taxi driver has been banned from driving after he was found to have crashed into a car and then refused to hand his details over.

Hossein Ziaian-Bidhendy, 60, denied driving his Toyota Avensis into George Byers’ Fiat Scudo as he sought to pick up a passenger on Coolgreany Crescent in Malpas on February 12.

Mr Byers had been waiting behind Ziaian-Bidhendy, of Clytha Square, and a video recorded in his taxi watched by magistrates at Newport Magistrates’ Court showed the Avensis’ reverse lights illuminating and the car reversing.

The car continued to reverse even though Mr Byers had tooted his horn to alert the other driver. Later in the video, a loud crack can be heard as the Avensis is driven into the other taxi at slow speed.

The two drivers had talked after the crash but Ziaian-Bidhendy maintained he was not at fault and had refused to give his name and address to Mr Byers.

Although Ziaian-Bidhendy said he had not paid “100 per cent attention” on reversing, he maintained throughout the trial that there had been no collision.

Magistrates disagreed and found him guilty of failing to give his name and address after the crash.

He had already obtained 12 points on his licence and also claimed exceptional hardship that he would lose his job after committing another driving offence last year.

He has been banned from driving for six months and will need to pay fines totalling £995, including £620 costs and £100 to Mr Byers to repair his van’s cracked grill, which is still to be repaired.