A TAXI COMPANY has ended up in court and had to pay over €2,000 after it attempted to save money by switching a tamper-proof security seal on a meter.

Ivoylo Martinov, from Bulgaria but with an address at Whitethorn Park, Palmerstown, Dublin and his firm Martin Taxi Service were summonsed to appear at Dublin District Court.

He and his business were accused of offences under the Metrology Act in connection with tampering with a taxi meter seal.

It followed an investigation by the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI).

Charges against Martinov himself were dropped after his firm entered a guilty plea, prosecution counsel Eoghan Cole told Judge Anthony Halpin.

Metrology inspector Kevin Barry told the court that one of the firm’s taxi’s was brought for a compliance check to ensure the meter’s security seal was intact in 2018. The seal ensured the meter was working correctly.

It was discovered that a sticker seal on the device was from a meter that had been in one of the firm’s other cars. It would have cost €90 to have the proper seal on the meter.

He agreed to pay €2,000 in prosecution expenses.

The judge noted from defence counsel Matthew Holmes that Martinov had caused himself a lot of difficulty and expense.

The director of the firm had no prior convictions and there was no evidence of any over-charging, the judge was told.

The judge also noted how much it had ended up costing the taxi firm, and he said he would apply the Probation of Offenders Act if there was a €250 donation to charity. The case was adjourned until a date in July.

The prosecution was brought by the NSAI Legal Metrology which oversees inspection of consumer measuring instruments.