A trainee taxi driver was caught cheating in an exam after his mobile phone blurted out directions.

The applicant was taking part in a knowledge test in Rickmansworth last Monday when he got stuck on the first question.

Bizarrely, he wasn’t actually caught looking at his phone.

Instead, he was rumbled because when he used his Android phone to type in an address to help him answer the question, his mobile gave him a voice instruction, which was heard by the examiner and the two other candidates.

The man was applying to become a Three Rivers District Council taxi driver.

Following the incident, his application has been refused by the council and he has been banned from sitting the knowledge test and reapplying for a driver’s licence for 12 months.

Councillor Steve Drury, chairman of the licensing committee, said: “Before people are granted a licence, they go through a rigorous screening process, which includes criminal and driving checks. They also have to show basic communication and language skills, literacy, the ability to give the correct change and their local route knowledge.

“These checks are in place to make sure people are who they say they are and so that we know when you get into a taxi, the person sitting in front of you is able to drive you to your destination safely.“