Taxi and private hire licences and insurance: what you need

In England and Wales outside London, your council licenses taxis and private hire. London, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own licensing bodies and rules, set out below.

The licences you need

The vehicle, the driver and, for private hire only, the operator who takes bookings are licensed separately. A taxi (hackney carriage) can be hailed in the street or hired at a rank. A private hire vehicle (PHV, or minicab) must be pre-booked.

For private hire, the driver, the vehicle and the operator must be licensed by the same council. Each council sets its own conditions, fees and vehicle standards. Knowingly using, driving or operating a private hire vehicle without the right licence is an offence. The offence is in section 46 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976.

Driver licences and checks

You need a driver licence from a council before you drive a taxi or private hire vehicle. A taxi can ply for hire only in the area of the council that licensed it. Pre-booked private hire journeys can start or end anywhere.

No statute requires a criminal record check for a driver licence. Councils ask for one, and should not license anyone on either barred list except in recorded exceptional circumstances.

When you renew a driver licence, or apply for the same type of licence in another area, you also complete an HMRC tax check. Private hire operators in England and Wales do the same.

Keeping the vehicle roadworthy

A licensed vehicle needs an MOT, and most councils also set their own compliance test. Where DVSA has granted a council a certificate of exemption, vehicles it licenses can use the council's certificate of compliance instead of an MOT. Councils decide how often they test and what standard they apply.

Taking private hire bookings

If you take private hire bookings or dispatch private hire vehicles, you need an operator licence. A licensed taxi can accept pre-booked fares without one. The council must be satisfied you are fit and proper, and it can attach conditions to the licence.

Record each booking before the journey starts and keep records of the vehicles you operate. Councils are expected to check operators with a basic DBS disclosure each year.

No law requires an operator in England or Wales to hold public liability insurance. A council can make it a licence condition, so ask yours what cover it expects. If you employ anyone, including office staff, you also need employers' liability insurance.

Hire and reward insurance

A vehicle that carries paying passengers must be insured for that use, known as hire and reward cover. It is an offence to use a vehicle on a road, or let someone else use it, without insurance that covers that use.

A policy that covers private use only does not cover paying passengers. A council cannot grant a private hire vehicle licence until it is satisfied the cover is in force. It can make the same cover a condition of a taxi licence.

Keep the cover in force while the vehicle is licensed. Ask your insurer to confirm in writing that the policy covers carrying passengers for hire or reward.

Licensing history across councils

English councils must record on a national register any driver licence refusal, suspension or revocation that rests on safeguarding or road safety information. They search it before they decide an application or renewal, so a licence refused or revoked elsewhere shows up. Councils must have regard to the Department for Transport's statutory standards when they set conditions on DBS checks, the Update Service and booking records.

London, Scotland and Northern Ireland

The sections above describe England and Wales outside London. Each of these places licenses taxis and private hire under its own law.

Planned changes in England

The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act 2026 allows national standards for taxi and private hire licensing in England. It also lets enforcement officers suspend licences granted by other English councils. The regulations that start these powers have not been made yet.

Appeals and help

Your council's licensing team can tell you its conditions, fees and vehicle standards. In London, ask Transport for London. If a council in England or Wales refuses a private hire driver licence or an operator licence, you can appeal to the magistrates' court. Appeal routes for taxi driver licences and for vehicle licences depend on the licence and the decision. The vehicle licence summary above shows the vehicle routes. Your council can tell you which route applies to a refused taxi driver licence.