Nearly half of Columbus' cabdrivers have not showed the city that they've installed credit-card readers in the back of their taxis. The deadline to do so was yesterday.

Nearly half of Columbus� cabdrivers have not showed the city that they�ve installed credit-card readers in the back of their taxis. The deadline to do so was yesterday.

Of the city�s 530 licensed cab drivers, 270 have sent the city letters saying they have the machines and that they adequately protect credit-card information, said Thom Ibinson, who oversees the city�s license section.

�If they can come in the next couple days, they�ll be OK,� he said. �We�re not here to punish. We�re trying to get everyone compliant. We�re going to work with them to see if we can get it in on time.

�If they continue to be delinquent, we would have to take action from there.�

That could mean a suspended license.

When the city changed its taxi rules last summer, it gave cab owners a year to install credit-card readers in the back seats. The readers must be permanent. Drivers are not allowed to use devices that scan credit cards through a smartphone.

City officials wanted the credit-card readers as both a security measure and a convenience. When riders can swipe their own cards, it eliminates the need to hand the card to the driver.

The compliance letters are sent to the city by banks that ensured the credit-card readers use proper security measures to protect passengers from fraud or identity theft, Ibinson said.

Yellow Cab of Columbus and Acme Taxi, the city�s two largest cab companies, have sent compliance letters for all their taxis.

That leaves independent taxi drivers � there are about 350 in Columbus � to send in compliance letters.

Habtay Ocbazghi , president of the Independent Taxicab Association of Columbus, said his members were not aware they had to send compliance letters.

�It doesn�t mean they don�t have the credit-card readers and it doesn�t mean that they aren�t accepting credit cards. But they didn�t send the proof of compliance to the city of Columbus, which I believe all of them are compliant for that.�

wdrabold@dispatch.com

@WillDrabold