According to harrowing new data obtained through a Freedom of Information request by Sexual Abuse Compensation Advice, the Metropolitan Police logged a total of 70 arrests leading to charges between January 2023 and December 2025, where the suspect’s occupation was listed as a taxi or minicab driver.
In 2023, the force recorded 10 total offences – this figure more than doubled to 26 in 2024, before climbing further to 34 in 2025.
The data also shows that the number of taxi drivers raping and sexually assaulting passengers almost doubled in a single year.
While there were no recorded offences committed by on-duty cabbies against those in the back seat in 2023, there were six the following year.
However, that disturbing figure rose to 11-passenger-related sex offences in last year alone. Those offences ranged from one count of exposure, to another count of the rape of a woman aged 16 or older.
The Met Police also recorded seven counts of sexual assault on a female and a further two of assaulting a female aged 13 or over ‘by penetration with part of body / a thing’.
Of the 70 total charges across the three years, 17 were committed directly against passengers during a journey. The remaining 52 offences were committed outside of work – 31 of which were for rape, with a further three attempted rapes.
The dark figures also revealed that on 19 occasions, licensed cabbies targeted children, with the Met Police recording two counts of raping a girl aged between 13 and 15 – both of which took place in 2024.
Just last year, a taxi driver was arrested and charged with causing / inciting a girl under 13 years old to engage in sexual activity by penetration.
The remaining 22 offences recorded against off-duty cabbies in 2025 include: one count of attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child, each of the previously mentioned attempted rape cases, two counts in engaging in sexual communication with a child, seven counts of rape, eight of sexually assaulting a fermale and one of sharing a photograph or film of a person in an intimate state intending to cause alarm distress or humiliation.
Other chilling offences recorded by the Metropolitan Police across the three-year period included gross indecency with a child, indecent assault on a girl under 14 and assaulting a boy under 13 by touching.
A spokesperson for the force said:
“The Met is committed to tackling sexual violence and abuse across the city. “We are delivering major improvements in how we support victims of sexual offences throughout active investigations, providing more than 23,000 officers and staff with bespoke training and rolling out enhanced victim services to increase the quality of our communications. “Providing better support for victims, while expanding specialist teams to relentlessly pursue the highest risk predatory men, has seen stronger outcomes for victims and survivors, with the Met tripling charges for rape and serious sexual offences.”
They continued:
“As part of our work under Operation Soteria, we are working tirelessly to build confidence and encourage victim survivors to come forward and report sexual offending to us. “We will continue to work closely with TfL [Transport for London], BTP [British Transport Police] and local partners, recognising that lasting safety on all aspects of the capital’s transport network requires a coordinated, city-wide response.”
The statistics however paint a devastating picture of the dangers faced by vulnerable individuals, particularly women, who place their trust and physical safety in the hands of licensed drivers within an isolated, enclosed environment.
“These disclosures highlight a deeply concerning breach of public trust,”
said CICA (Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority) specialist Ellie Lamey, of Sexual Abuse Compensation Advice.
“Passengers place their physical safety entirely in the hands of drivers within an isolated, enclosed environment.
“To see licensed professionals exploiting this dynamic is unacceptable. The trauma of an assault in a taxi can be devastating, yet many survivors feel too intimidated or frightened to report the abuse.”
“This data must be a wake-up call for licensing boards. We need universally stringent vetting and robust safeguarding measures so passengers can travel without fear, and perpetrators face absolute accountability.”
The findings in Greater London reflect a growing national concern regarding the vetting processes for taxi and private cab licenses. Currently, licensing standards can vary significantly between different local authorities, leading to calls for a more unified, stringent approach to driver background checks.
“What these figures show is a pattern that cannot be ignored,”
added Lamey.
“When a passenger enters a vehicle, they are in a position of extreme vulnerability. These statistics suggest that for dozens of people in London, that trust was met with life-changing trauma.”
Sexual Abuse Compensation Advice offers expert legal support and advice to those affected by sexual abuse. You can book a free consultation or call their 24-hour helpline by visiting their website.
