Taxi Knowledge Test
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Birmingham licence conditions: questions and answers

17 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

Reporting and time limits

  1. You are arrested for an offence but not charged. What must you do?

    • A. Nothing, unless the police later charge you with it
    • B. Tell the Licensing Office in writing within 7 days
    • C. Tell your operator within 14 days
    • D. Tell the Licensing Office when you next renew

  2. You move to a new home address. By when must you tell the Licensing Office in writing?

    • A. Within 7 days
    • B. Within 14 days
    • C. Within 28 days
    • D. At your next renewal

  3. One of your vehicle's identity plates is stolen. Within how many days must you report it in writing to the Licensing Office?

    • A. 7 days
    • B. 14 days
    • C. 24 hours
    • D. 3 days

  4. You lose your private hire driver's badge. What must you do?

    • A. Make a copy to wear until a new one comes
    • B. Tell your operator, who will tell the council
    • C. Tell the police and give the report number to the Licensing Office within 3 days
    • D. Tell the Licensing Office within 14 days

  5. Your doctor tells you about a medical condition that you must report to the DVLA. When must you tell the Licensing Office in writing?

    • A. Within 3 days
    • B. Within 7 days
    • C. Within 21 days
    • D. Only if the DVLA takes your licence away

  6. Your private hire driver licence runs out and you do not renew it. How long do you have to return your badge?

    • A. 3 days
    • B. 7 days
    • C. 14 days
    • D. You may keep it

  7. A passenger leaves a bag in your car. Where and when must you hand it in?

    • A. At your operator's office within 7 days
    • B. At the Licensing Office within 24 hours
    • C. At a West Midlands Police station within 72 hours
    • D. Keep it safe in the car until the passenger calls you

  8. You hand in lost property at a police station and get a receipt. What must you do with the receipt?

    • A. Keep it in the car for 12 months
    • B. Give it to the passenger if they call
    • C. Throw it away once the owner has collected the item
    • D. Send a copy to the Licensing Office within 3 days

  9. Your vehicle insurance runs out and you cannot renew it straight away. What must you do?

    • A. Keep working and renew it within 14 days
    • B. Tell the Licensing Office in writing within 72 hours and return the plates
    • C. Tell your operator within 7 days
    • D. Do only short journeys until it is renewed

Bookings, signs and your vehicle

  1. A regular passenger calls your own mobile and asks you to pick her up now. What should you do?

    • A. Take her, as she is a regular customer
    • B. Ask her to book through your operator
    • C. Take her, but do not switch the meter on
    • D. Take her, then tell the operator at the end of the day

  2. When may a mobile phone be fitted in your private hire car to accept bookings?

    • A. Only when it hosts your operator's booking app
    • B. At any time, as long as it is a hands-free phone
    • C. Never, phones are not allowed in the car
    • D. Only for regular customers who call you

  3. Your operator sends you a job. Which details must you have before you respond to it?

    • A. The passenger's phone number and home address
    • B. The name, pick-up time and place, destination and any fare
    • C. Only the pick-up address
    • D. The passenger's name and how they will pay

  4. You want to start working for a different operator. When must you tell the Licensing Office in writing?

    • A. Within 7 days of starting
    • B. At your next renewal
    • C. Within 14 days of starting
    • D. Before you start work for the new operator

  5. Where must your operator's door signs be displayed?

    • A. On the two front doors
    • B. On the two rear doors and the boot lid
    • C. On the rear window
    • D. On the bonnet

  6. Which fare table must be displayed inside your private hire car?

    • A. The council's hackney carriage fare table
    • B. A fare table you make yourself
    • C. The fare table issued by your operator
    • D. No fare table is needed

  7. You do not use a securing bracket for the rear identity plate. How must you fix it to the car?

    • A. With strong magnets
    • B. With heavy-duty tape
    • C. With cable ties
    • D. With bolts, rivets or screws

  8. Unless a passenger asks you to go another way, which route must you take to the destination?

    • A. The route your sat nav likes best
    • B. The route with the fewest traffic lights
    • C. The shortest possible route
    • D. The quickest route at that time

Answers

  1. B. Tell the Licensing Office in writing within 7 days. You must tell the Licensing Office in writing within 7 days if you are arrested for any offence, whether or not you are charged.
  2. A. Within 7 days. A change of home address is one of the things you must report in writing within 7 days.
  3. D. 3 days. If a vehicle identity plate is lost or stolen, you must report it in writing to the Licensing Office within 3 days.
  4. C. Tell the police and give the report number to the Licensing Office within 3 days. Tell the police and get a police report number. Then report it to the Licensing Office within 3 days.
  5. A. Within 3 days. If an illness or medical condition stops you driving, or means you must tell the DVLA, you must tell the Licensing Office in writing within 3 days.
  6. B. 7 days. The badge belongs to the council. If your licence runs out, is suspended, is revoked or is not renewed, you must return the badge within 7 days.
  7. C. At a West Midlands Police station within 72 hours. Search your car after every job. Hand in any lost property at a West Midlands Police station as soon as possible, and within 72 hours, and get a receipt.
  8. D. Send a copy to the Licensing Office within 3 days. You must give a copy of the police receipt to the Licensing Office within 3 days of getting it.
  9. B. Tell the Licensing Office in writing within 72 hours and return the plates. You must tell the Licensing Office in writing within 72 hours of the cover ending and return the plates. The vehicle can be suspended until you show new insurance.
  10. B. Ask her to book through your operator. A private hire driver may not make or take their own bookings. You must not use a phone to accept bookings, and you must not take a return booking straight from a passenger.
  11. A. Only when it hosts your operator's booking app. Phones must not be used or carried to invite or accept bookings. The one exception is a phone fitted to host an app for bookings from your operator.
  12. B. The name, pick-up time and place, destination and any fare. You must not respond to a booking unless you are given the passenger's name, the time and place of pick-up, the destination and the fare, if there is one.
  13. D. Before you start work for the new operator. Before you start with the new operator, tell the Licensing Office in writing. Give your old and new operator, your new call sign and start date, and a signed operator's form.
  14. A. On the two front doors. The operator identification door signs must be on the two front doors of the vehicle.
  15. C. The fare table issued by your operator. You must display the fare table issued by your operator where every passenger can clearly see it.
  16. D. With bolts, rivets or screws. The rear plate must be fixed so it cannot be removed without tools. String, tape, magnets and Velcro are not allowed.
  17. C. The shortest possible route. You must take the shortest possible route, unless your passenger tells you to go another way.

Sources

  • 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
  • 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