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Birmingham plying for hire: questions and answers

9 practice questions for the Birmingham City Council taxi and private hire knowledge test, with answers and explanations at the end.

Free from taxiknowledgetest.co.uk. Not an official council document: check your council's current guidance.

Questions

Plying for hire

  1. Which of these is a lawful private hire journey?

    • A. Someone waves you down in Broad Street
    • B. Someone outside New Street station asks you for a lift
    • C. A booking made through your operator and passed to you
    • D. A friend of a passenger asks for a lift after you drop off

  2. It is late on a Saturday. You have no booking. Which of these could look like plying for hire?

    • A. Driving home at the end of your shift with your door signs on
    • B. Waiting at your operator's base
    • C. Parking at a supermarket to buy food
    • D. Parking outside a busy club so people ask you for lifts

  3. You are waiting at the airport for a booked passenger. A traveller asks if you are free to take him into the city. What should you do?

    • A. Refuse, and tell him to contact a licensed operator
    • B. Take him if your booked passenger is 20 minutes late
    • C. Take him, but agree a cash fare before you set off
    • D. Take him, then ask the operator to log the job later

  4. A private hire driver slows down next to people on the pavement and calls out "Need a car?". What is he doing?

    • A. Giving good customer service
    • B. Plying for hire, which is unlawful for private hire vehicles
    • C. Nothing wrong, if he has his badge on
    • D. Taking a booking on behalf of his operator, which is allowed

  5. A private hire driver is found guilty of plying for hire with no valid insurance. What does Birmingham's committee policy say should happen to his licence?

    • A. Nothing, because it is a police matter
    • B. He should get a written warning only
    • C. It should be revoked
    • D. It should be suspended for 7 days

  6. A person flags down a private hire vehicle in the street and says, "It's fine, I'll pay cash." Does that make the journey lawful?

    • A. No, the journey is still not booked through an operator
    • B. Yes, if the fare is paid in advance
    • C. Yes, if the passenger signs a note saying they asked for it
    • D. Yes, if the driver phones the operator first

  7. A woman comes out of a takeaway that has a free phone to your operator. She asks you to take her home. Can you take her details and pass the booking to your operator?

    • A. Yes, if your operator accepts it before you set off
    • B. Yes, because the takeaway has a free phone to your operator
    • C. Yes, if she pays the fare before the journey
    • D. No, a driver must not take passenger details for the operator

  8. You carry a passenger who did not book through your operator. What is likely to happen to your insurance?

    • A. Nothing changes if the passenger pays by card
    • B. It is likely to be invalid, so you could be prosecuted for no insurance as well
    • C. It stays valid because you were at work
    • D. It is valid if the journey is under 5 miles

  9. What does the council say a conviction for plying for hire is likely to bring?

    • A. A warning letter and nothing more
    • B. A large fine, penalty points and possibly a driving ban
    • C. A short training course instead of a fine
    • D. A small fine that has no effect on your licence or driving

Answers

  1. C. A booking made through your operator and passed to you. You may only collect passengers when the job was booked through an operator licensed by Birmingham and passed to you by that operator.
  2. D. Parking outside a busy club so people ask you for lifts. You must not park near places such as bars, clubs, takeaways, hotels and hospitals in a way that makes you look available for hire, unless your operator has given you a booking there.
  3. A. Refuse, and tell him to contact a licensed operator. If a member of the public asks you for a ride, you must refuse and tell them to contact a licensed operator. Taking him would be plying for hire.
  4. B. Plying for hire, which is unlawful for private hire vehicles. Offering rides to people in the street is plying for hire. It is a criminal offence for a PHV driver to take a fare that was not booked with their operator.
  5. C. It should be revoked. The council's committee policy says any driver found guilty of plying for hire and making their insurance invalid should have their licence revoked.
  6. A. No, the journey is still not booked through an operator. How the passenger pays makes no difference. Every job must be booked with your operator before you collect the passenger.
  7. D. No, a driver must not take passenger details for the operator. A PHV driver may not take passenger details for the operator, even next to a free phone or radio link. You must not pass booking details to your operator yourself.
  8. B. It is likely to be invalid, so you could be prosecuted for no insurance as well. Carrying a passenger who has not booked is likely to make your insurance invalid. You could then be prosecuted for plying for hire and for having no insurance.
  9. B. A large fine, penalty points and possibly a driving ban. The council's legal information says a conviction is likely to bring a substantial fine, penalty points and possible disqualification from driving.

Sources

  • Private hire legal information, Birmingham City Council, Undated (the PDF file was created on 15 September 2016). Archived copy of 10 May 2026 (live page blocked automated access): https://web.archive.org/web/20260510045631/https://www.birmingham.gov.uk/download/downloads/id/4214/private_hire_legal_information.pdf. Checked 29 October 2026. https://www.birmingham.gov.uk/download/downloads/id/4214/private_hire_legal_information.pdf
  • Private Hire Combined Driver and Vehicle Licence Conditions, Birmingham City Council, Undated (the PDF file was created on 8 January 2020). The same 34 conditions are Appendix 4 of the 2023 licensing policy. Archived copy of 10 May 2026 (live page blocked automated access): https://web.archive.org/web/20260510233324/https://www.birmingham.gov.uk/download/downloads/id/821/private_hire_combined_driver_and_vehicle_licence_conditions.pdf. Checked 29 October 2026. https://www.birmingham.gov.uk/download/downloads/id/821/private_hire_combined_driver_and_vehicle_licence_conditions.pdf
  • Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy, Version 1 (Appendix 3 Private Hire Suitability Test; Appendix 4 Private Hire Driver and Vehicle Conditions of Licence), Birmingham City Council, Approved at City Council on 18 April 2023. Archived copy of 13 May 2026 (live page blocked automated access): https://web.archive.org/web/20260513112028/https://www.birmingham.gov.uk/download/downloads/id/27022/hackney_carriage_and_private_hire_licensing_policy.pdf. The council's policy download page, archived 15 May 2026, still lists this as the latest version.. Checked 29 October 2026. https://www.birmingham.gov.uk/download/downloads/id/27022/hackney_carriage_and_private_hire_licensing_policy.pdf