Hackney carriage or private hire: which licence do you need?

The legal difference: plying for hire or pre-booked

A hackney carriage can ply for hire. That means it can stand at a taxi rank, or drive around and be stopped by someone who waves it down. Hackney carriages are licensed by the council under the Town Police Clauses Act 1847 and Part II of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976. Under section 45 of the 1847 Act it is an offence to ply for hire without a hackney carriage licence.

A private hire vehicle cannot ply for hire at all. It can only carry passengers who have booked through a licensed private hire operator. Private hire is licensed under Part II of the 1976 Act. Section 46 makes it an offence to drive a private hire vehicle without a private hire driver's licence, to use a vehicle as a PHV without a vehicle licence, or to operate PHVs without an operator's licence.

Department for Transport (DfT) guidance puts it simply: taxis can be hired at ranks or in the street, but private hire vehicles are not legally available for immediate hire and must be booked through an operator.

A hackney carriage can also take pre-booked work. DfT guidance says a taxi licence holder may carry pre-booked fares anywhere in England and Wales.

Some councils issue one combined or dual driver licence that covers both. Nottingham, for example, issues a combined hackney carriage and private hire driver licence.

Insurance

Your insurance must match the work you do. A hackney carriage needs cover for public hire: carrying passengers for hire and reward, including from ranks and people who hail you. Private hire cover is for pre-booked journeys only.

South Oxfordshire District Council, for example, says hackney carriage insurance must state that it covers carrying passengers for hire and reward, and that insurance which only covers pre-booked journeys is for private hire vehicles only.

If a private hire driver picks up someone who hails them, they are not only breaking licensing law. Their insurance is unlikely to cover that journey either. Check your policy wording with your insurer and your council.

Meters and fares

Councils have the power to set maximum fares for hackney carriage journeys within their area, and most do. The fare is shown on the meter using the council's table of fares (the tariff). DfT guidance says the tariff is a maximum, so a lower fare can be agreed with the passenger.

There is no power for councils to set private hire fares. The operator sets its own prices, and the passenger usually agrees the price, or how it will be worked out, when they book. Many private hire bookings now come through apps that show a price in advance.

If you apply for a hackney carriage licence, expect questions on reading the fare table and working out fares and change. Practise those in numeracy and fares.

The triple lock

Private hire outside London follows what is often called the triple lock. The DfT's Statutory Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Standards describe it as the rule that the operator, the vehicle and the driver must all be licensed by the same council.

So a driver with a Wolverhampton private hire licence must drive a Wolverhampton-licensed vehicle and take bookings from a Wolverhampton-licensed operator. City of Wolverhampton Council says its private hire licence allows pre-booked journeys anywhere in the country on exactly those terms.

There is one exception for operators. Since 1 October 2015 (section 55A of the 1976 Act, added by the Deregulation Act 2015), an operator can pass a booking to another licensed operator, including one in another council area, in London or in Scotland.

Working outside your area

Hackney carriage: you can only ply for hire (ranks and hailing) in the area of the council that licensed you. Outside that area you can only take pre-booked work. DfT guidance says councils should ask hackney carriage applicants to declare that they intend to work mainly in the council's area.

Private hire: a journey can start and end anywhere, as long as it was booked through an operator licensed by the same council as you and your vehicle. This is often called cross-border hiring.

Cross-border hiring makes enforcement hard: an officer in one town has no power over a driver licensed by another council. The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act 2026 (Royal Assent 29 April 2026) includes powers for national standards for licences, a duty to report concerns about drivers licensed in other areas, and a power for enforcement officers to suspend a licence issued by any council in England for public safety (sections 70 to 86).

As of 29 October 2026, legislation.gov.uk shows these sections as prospective, not yet in force. Section 108 says they start on a day the Secretary of State sets by regulations, and we have not found any such regulations. Until they start, the current rules above still apply.

Why many app drivers hold Wolverhampton licences

The 1976 Act does not say you must live in the council area that grants your private hire licence. Section 51 asks the council to be satisfied that you are a fit and proper person, that your immigration status allows you to drive a PHV, and that you have held a full driving licence for at least 12 months.

Because of this, a driver can apply to a council other than their own, and then work anywhere on pre-booked journeys under the triple lock, as long as the operator also holds a licence from that council.

DfT statistics for England show the effect. At 1 April 2026, City of Wolverhampton Council had licensed about 38,000 private hire vehicles, 13.1% of all PHVs in England. The DfT notes that this shows where vehicles are licensed, not where they work, and that some councils license far more vehicles than their population would suggest.

Trade press reports that the government's response to the Transport Committee, published on 20 October 2026, says drivers should ordinarily be licensed where they do most of their work. As of 29 October 2026 no law requires this. If you plan to work mostly in one town, check what that town's council expects, as policies vary. See our Wolverhampton page for that council's test.

How the knowledge test differs by licence type

Each council sets its own test, and many test hackney carriage drivers harder on local knowledge, because passengers who hail a cab expect the driver to know the way. DfT guidance says hackney carriage drivers should pass a test of local topographical (place and route) knowledge, and that councils should not require topographical or navigation tests for private hire drivers, because satnav does that job.

Bristol: both tests have 100 questions in up to 90 minutes, but the hackney carriage test needs 90% and the private hire test needs 75%. The hackney carriage test also has sections on offices and flats and on areas outside Bristol. The council has approved removing the geography questions from the private hire test, but says the current test stays until the new one is ready.

Birmingham: the council's fee list has a separate hackney carriage Knowledge Test (£150 in 2026/27) and a private hire test (£75). We could not read the council's own description of either test.

Leeds: new drivers complete a set of training modules with tests. The council's fee list shows a hackney carriage "AZ and maps test" and local knowledge re-sit, and a separate private hire "districts of Leeds and city centre" seminar.

Side by side

Which one should you choose?

• Choose hackney carriage if you want to work ranks and take people who hail you in one town. Expect a harder local knowledge test, a vehicle that meets the council's hackney carriage rules, and public hire insurance.
• Choose private hire if you want to take pre-booked or app work. You will need an operator licensed by the same council as you.
• Ask your council if it issues a combined licence, which lets you do both.
• Whatever you choose, read your council's policy and licence conditions, then practise the core topics: licensing law, safeguarding and equality and disability.