Hackney Carriage vehicle licensing

The Licensing Team is responsible for the licensing and regulation of hackney carriages (also known as taxis) in the borough. Typically these are the London style black cabs and converted people carrier vehicles. A hackney carriage can only be driven by a driver who holds a dual hackney carriage and private hire driver’s licence.

Hackney Carriages are the subject of strict licensing rules, regulations and conditions to ensure they remain fit for the purpose. Regular mechanical safety checks are carried out and they are also subject to tests on their appearance and cleanliness. Public safety is paramount and only cars meeting the strict standards and specification are licensed. All Hackney Carriages are wheelchair accessible vehicles. Drivers may not be able to carry all types of wheelchair and will perform a risk assessment for less standard wheelchairs. This will establish if they are able to transport them safely.

All licensed vehicles undergo strict mechanical testing during the period of the licence. The frequency of testing depends upon the vehicle age. The standard applied by the testing station is that contained in the 'Vehicle standards inspection manual'. A copy of this document can be viewed below in the documents section at the bottom of the page.

Licensing Officers must approve any advertising before any promotional material is applied to, or within a licensed hackney carriage vehicle. Advertising applications are subject to our Licensing Vehicle Advertising Policy which can be downloaded from the list of documents below.

New applications

You can apply for a new hackney carriage vehicle licence by downloading a guidance and application pack below. The guidance pack outlines the procedure that must be followed apply for a new hackney carriage vehicle licence. It includes all relevant application forms, fees and the hackney carriage vehicle specification.

The current fees for a range of taxi licences can be viewed on the licence fees page

Renewal applications

Existing licence holders will be sent a renewal reminder 4 to 8 weeks before your licence is due for renewal. Renewal application forms are not available to download online. Please contact the Licensing Team to request a renewal reminder pack if you do not receive one within the timescales.

Making a change to an existing licence

Further guidance is available below for vehicle proprietors who need to notify the Licensing Team of changes, including:

to an existing vehicle licence
a change to your details
transferring the ownership of an existing licensed vehicle
updating a vehicle licence to reflect a change of registration number
applying for a temporary vehicle licence in the event that your vehicle is involved in an accident.

All hackney carriage vehicle licences are issued subject to compliance with the standard hackney carriage vehicle licence conditions. These are available below for your information.