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Birmingham private hire legal information: questions and answers

18 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

Licences, insurance and your vehicle

  1. Who may drive a private hire vehicle for hire in Birmingham?

    • A. Anyone who has held a full driving licence for three years
    • B. Someone with a current private hire driver licence from the council
    • C. Anyone the operator has added to its own insurance policy
    • D. Someone with a hackney carriage driver licence from any council in England

  2. Your vehicle and driver licences are from Birmingham. Which operator licence must your operator hold to send you bookings?

    • A. A Birmingham operator licence
    • B. Any operator licence in England
    • C. A London operator licence
    • D. No operator licence is needed for app bookings

  3. You hold a Birmingham private hire driver licence. A friend offers you his private hire car, which is licensed by Solihull Council. Can you use it for bookings?

    • A. Yes, as long as his insurance covers you to drive it
    • B. No, you may only drive a PHV licensed by Birmingham
    • C. Yes, but only for journeys that start in Solihull
    • D. Yes, if you tell the Licensing Office first

  4. Your brother is named on the insurance for your licensed private hire car. He only has an ordinary driving licence. Can he drive the car on your day off?

    • A. Yes, if he does not carry any passengers
    • B. Yes, because he is on the insurance
    • C. Yes, if he takes the licence plates off first
    • D. No, only a licensed private hire driver may drive it

  5. You are going to work in a private hire car that you have hired. What must you see before you start work?

    • A. The insurance certificate that covers you for private hire
    • B. The last owner's driving licence
    • C. The full service history of the car
    • D. A letter from your operator saying you can use it

  6. You sell your licensed private hire vehicle to another person. Within how many days must you tell the council in writing?

    • A. 14 days
    • B. 7 days
    • C. 28 days
    • D. 3 months

  7. When must your private hire licence plate be displayed on your vehicle?

    • A. Only when you have a passenger in the car
    • B. At all times, whether you are working or not
    • C. Only between 6pm and 6am
    • D. Only when you are logged on with your operator

  8. The council revokes your vehicle licence. How long do you have to return the licence plates?

    • A. 3 days
    • B. 14 days
    • C. 7 days
    • D. 28 days

  9. Your licence plate says your car can carry 4 passengers. A group of 5 friends asks you to fit them all in. What should you do?

    • A. Take all 5 if one of them is a child
    • B. Take all 5, but drive slowly
    • C. Take all 5 if your operator agrees
    • D. Take no more than 4, the number on your plate

  10. Someone reverses into your private hire car and badly dents a door. The car is still safe to drive. Do you need to tell the Licensing Office?

    • A. No, because the car is still safe to drive
    • B. Yes, within 72 hours, because the damage affects how it looks
    • C. Only if the police came to the accident
    • D. No, only your insurance company needs to know

On the road and with passengers

  1. Can a Birmingham private hire vehicle use a bus lane that has a sign allowing taxis?

    • A. Yes, private hire vehicles count as taxis
    • B. Yes, but only when carrying a passenger
    • C. No, private hire vehicles may not use bus lanes in Birmingham
    • D. Yes, but only outside rush hours

  2. You are a private hire driver. There is space on a taxi rank near New Street station. Can you wait there for your next booking?

    • A. No, only hackney carriages may wait on a taxi rank
    • B. Yes, as long as you stay in the vehicle with the engine off
    • C. Yes, for up to ten minutes
    • D. Yes, if there are no taxis waiting on the rank

  3. You arrive to collect a passenger from her home. What should you do?

    • A. Sound your horn so she knows you are there
    • B. Ring the doorbell the moment you stop
    • C. Drive away if she does not come out in one minute
    • D. Wait a short time, then go and knock on the door

  4. You will be 15 minutes late for a pick-up because of an accident on the road. What should you do?

    • A. Do your best to contact the passenger and tell them
    • B. Say nothing and get there as fast as you can
    • C. Cancel the booking and go to the next job
    • D. Ask another driver to take it without telling the operator

  5. A passenger with an assistance dog gets into your car. Where does the council say it is sensible for the dog to sit?

    • A. In the boot
    • B. On the back seat next to the passenger
    • C. In the front passenger footwell
    • D. On the passenger's lap

  6. You are taking a passenger into the city centre. Your operator asks you to collect a second booking on the way. When can you do this?

    • A. At any time, because the operator asked
    • B. Only if the second passenger pays more
    • C. Only if it adds less than 5 minutes
    • D. Only if your first passenger asks you to

  7. No fare was agreed when the passenger booked. What is the most you may charge?

    • A. Whatever the passenger agrees to pay at the end
    • B. The fare worked out from your fare table
    • C. The hackney carriage fare plus 10%
    • D. A fare your operator texts you after the job

  8. A passenger gets into your car. When may you play the radio?

    • A. Only if the passenger agrees
    • B. At any time, if it is not too loud
    • C. Only on journeys longer than 10 minutes
    • D. Only when you are stopped in traffic

Answers

  1. B. Someone with a current private hire driver licence from the council. To drive a private hire vehicle you must hold a private hire driver licence. It must come from the same council that licensed the vehicle. A DVLA licence or insurance on its own is not enough.
  2. A. A Birmingham operator licence. The council's legal information says a Birmingham-licensed driver may drive a Birmingham-licensed vehicle and take work from a Birmingham-licensed operator.
  3. B. No, you may only drive a PHV licensed by Birmingham. Your driver licence must come from the same council that licensed the vehicle. The council's legal information gives this exact example: a Birmingham driver cannot drive a PHV licensed by Solihull.
  4. D. No, only a licensed private hire driver may drive it. The driver of a licensed PHV must hold a private hire driver licence, even when the car is not being used for private hire. Family members may not drive it unless Birmingham has licensed them.
  5. A. The insurance certificate that covers you for private hire. The insurance must cover you to drive the car for private hire. The council says you must see the insurance certificate before you start work in a hired or borrowed car.
  6. A. 14 days. You must tell the Licensing Office in writing within 14 days of the sale. Give the name and address of the person you sold it to.
  7. B. At all times, whether you are working or not. The plate must be displayed in the way the council's signage policy says, at all times, whether you are working or not.
  8. C. 7 days. You must return your plates to the council within 7 days of the licence running out, being revoked or being suspended.
  9. D. Take no more than 4, the number on your plate. Carrying more people than the number on your PHV licence plate is a criminal offence. It may also make your insurance invalid.
  10. B. Yes, within 72 hours, because the damage affects how it looks. Birmingham says you must report any accident that affects the vehicle's safety, performance or appearance, or the comfort of passengers, within 72 hours. It is best to do this in writing and keep a copy.
  11. C. No, private hire vehicles may not use bus lanes in Birmingham. Private hire vehicles may not use any bus lane in Birmingham, even one that taxis may use. Only a police officer can direct you into one.
  12. A. No, only hackney carriages may wait on a taxi rank. You must not park or let your PHV stand on any taxi rank. The council says private hire drivers who stand on hackney carriage ranks will be prosecuted.
  13. D. Wait a short time, then go and knock on the door. Wait a short time, then get out and knock on the door. You must not sound your horn. You can also ask your operator to call the passenger.
  14. A. Do your best to contact the passenger and tell them. You should arrive at the agreed time. If you are going to be late, do your best to contact the passenger and tell them.
  15. C. In the front passenger footwell. You must carry the passenger and the dog unless you have a medical exemption notice. The council says it is sensible to let the dog sit in the front passenger footwell.
  16. D. Only if your first passenger asks you to. Once you have passengers in the car, you must not collect anyone else unless the first passenger asks you to.
  17. B. The fare worked out from your fare table. The fare is agreed between the operator and the customer when they book, and you must charge only that. If no fare was agreed, you must not charge more than your fare table gives.
  18. A. Only if the passenger agrees. You must not play music or the radio without your passenger's permission. The only exception is equipment you use to send and receive messages about your work.

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
  • 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
  • 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
  • Licence conditions for hackney carriages (taxis) and private hire, Birmingham City Council, Page last updated 11 December 2023. Archived copy of 14 June 2026 (live page blocked automated access): https://web.archive.org/web/20260614140138/https://www.birmingham.gov.uk/info/20107/taxi_and_private_hire/294/information_for_taxi_drivers_private_hire_drivers_and_operators/2. Checked 29 October 2026. https://www.birmingham.gov.uk/info/20107/taxi_and_private_hire/294/information_for_taxi_drivers_private_hire_drivers_and_operators/2