A London taxi driver was threatened with blackmail on camera after allegedly being filmed using his phone while driving.
A viral TikTok shows a cyclist approaching the cabbie and reprimanding him for using his device while his Hackney Carriage was stationary on Shaftesbury Avenue in West End.
The cabman can be seen with two phones, which were docked in mounts attached to the vehicle’s centre console.
"What do we have over here? Black cab texting while driving. Not one but two phones," the cyclist said while riding alongside the taxi on a Santander Cycle.
After the driver appeared to point to his devices on the docks, the cyclist replied: "It doesn't matter mate, we're doing transactions now, so how do we come to a solution, a conclusion."
As the pair travelled slowly down the street towards the Sondheim Theatre, the cyclist offered to delete the clip for cash, saying: "So, shall I just take you to court? Just give me a tenner and I'll let you be."
It is unclear whether the driver paid the cyclist.
In a previous video posted by the cyclist, he approaches a Metropolitan Police van, telling the officers inside that he is "doing them a favour" by stopping motorists using their phones.
But the Licensed Taxi Drivers Association, which represents black cab drivers in London, with a membership of over 10,000, described the cyclist's actions as "yet another scam".
The union posted on X, formerly known as Twitter: "The law permits touching a phone screen whilst the phone is in a fixed cradle in exactly the same way it is lawful to touch a fixed screen in a TXE or any other modern car! Tell the scammers to go forth and multiply.”
Steve McNamara, the LTDA’s general secretary, assumes the driver was making a call while stuck in traffic as “many rely on mobile phones to do business”.
Speaking to The Standard, Mr McNamara said the tactic used by the cyclist is becoming more common and warned those visiting the capital of “another scam”, alongside the likes of phone snatching and overpriced pedicabs.
Under current laws, drivers are permitted to use their phone for satellite navigation or swipe the screen for a call, provided it is secured in a cradle.
Guilty drivers face up to six points on their licence and a £200 fine, while Transport for London has a strict policy where drivers can have their licenses revoked for using a phone while driving.
There is no specific law against using a phone while on a bicycle.
Scotland Yard and TfL were approached for comment.
