Oldham driver conditions: questions and answers
37 practice questions for the Oldham Council taxi and private hire knowledge test, with answers and explanations at the end.
Free from taxiknowledgetest.co.uk. Not an official council or TfL document: check the current official guidance.
Questions
Telling the Council and the operator
You move to a new house. How long do you have to tell the Council in writing?
You start work with a private hire operator. When must you tell the Council in writing?
You leave one operator and join another. What must you do?
The police arrest you, but do not charge you. When must you tell the Council?
You are offered a speed awareness course. Must you tell the Council?
Your doctor finds a new condition that may affect your Group 2 entitlement. How long do you have to email the Council?
You have an accident in the licensed vehicle you are driving. How long do you have to report it to the Licensing Department?
You are worried about a young passenger who may be at risk. When must you report it?
A passenger makes a complaint to you about your driving. What must you do?
Badges, conduct and passengers
When must you wear your driver's badge?
An Authorised Officer asks for your badge because your licence is suspended. What must you do?
You arrive for a booking and the passenger is not outside. How may you use the horn?
You have to wait for a passenger in a parked vehicle. What should you do with the engine?
An older passenger needs help getting out of the car. What does Oldham's condition say about touching them?
A passenger tries to kiss you, and you are both happy about it. What does condition 5.15 say?
You want to give your friend a lift during a private hire booking. When is this allowed?
A vehicle is licensed for 4 passengers. A family of 4 adults has a baby with them. May you take all of them?
A 13-year-old travelling alone asks to sit next to you. What must you do?
In the vehicle and daily checks
Which of these is allowed in the vehicle under the Oldham conditions?
A passenger is in the car and you want to play the radio. What must you do first?
Your friend rings during a journey with a passenger on board. What does the condition say?
When must the daily vehicle check log be completed?
Which of these is on the Council's daily vehicle check list?
Where must you keep the record of your daily checks?
What must the mandatory door signs on a private hire vehicle say?
Which sign must you show on the passenger side of the windscreen of a private hire vehicle?
A passenger wants to bring a pet cat, which is not an assistance animal. What do the vehicle conditions say?
Fares, waiting without a booking and lost property
Your vehicle has a meter. When may you cancel or hide it?
A passenger asks for a receipt. What must you do?
The operator quoted £12 for a booking. Traffic was bad. How much may you ask for?
Someone gets into your car and says, "I booked a car." What must you make sure of?
You have no booking. Where does condition 8.2 tell you not to wait?
Outside a bar, a person asks you for a lift now. You offer to ring your operator and put the job through. Is this allowed?
When must you search the vehicle for lost property?
You find a bag and cannot return it to the owner. What must you do?
A blind passenger gets in with an assistance dog. Who decides where the dog travels?
You have a medical exemption from carrying assistance dogs. What must you do with the notice?
Answers
- C. 7 days. Condition 1.1 says you must tell the Council in writing of a change of address or contact details within 7 days.
- A. Within 7 days. Condition 1.2 gives you 7 days from starting work with an operator.
- D. Tell the Council in writing within 7 days. Condition 1.3 says any change of operator must be reported to the Council in writing within 7 days.
- B. At once in writing, and within 24 hours at most. Condition 2.1 covers arrest and criminal investigation as well as charges and convictions. You must tell the Council at once in writing, or within 24 hours at most.
- C. Yes, within 24 hours at most. Condition 2.1 lists a fixed penalty or speed awareness course among the things to report within 24 hours at most.
- A. 48 hours at most. Condition 3.1 says you must email the Council at once, or within 48 hours at most, of the diagnosis or change.
- D. 72 hours. Condition 5.20 says accidents in a licensed vehicle must be reported to the Licensing Department within 72 hours.
- B. At once, and within 24 hours at most. Condition 5.13 says you must watch for safeguarding concerns and report them at once, or within 24 hours at most, following Council guidance.
- C. Report it to the operator when the booking ends. Condition 5.14 says you must report the complaint to the operator at the end of the booking.
- B. At all times when driving a private hire vehicle. Condition 4.1 says the badge must be worn, plainly visible, at all times when driving a private hire vehicle. You must also show it to a passenger who asks.
- D. Return it immediately. Condition 4.2 says the badge must be returned immediately when an Authorised Officer asks for it, for example when a licence is suspended or revoked.
- C. You must not; it is for emergencies only. Condition 5.5 says you must not use the horn to attract a customer. It may only be used in an emergency.
- A. Switch it off. Condition 5.4 says you must switch off the engine if you have to wait. No idling.
- D. You must not physically touch them without consent. Condition 5.7 says you should give reasonable help, but must not touch a passenger to give mobility assistance without their consent.
- C. No sexual activity in a licensed vehicle, even if consensual. Condition 5.15 bans sexual activity in a licensed vehicle even if consensual. The conditions say this includes touching, kissing, and inappropriate comments or conversation.
- B. With the express consent of the hirer or passenger. Condition 5.16 says you may not carry anyone other than the hirer or passenger unless the hirer or passenger expressly agrees, or it is an approved ride share journey.
- D. No, a baby counts as a passenger. The conditions count every child as a passenger, babies too. Condition 5.17 says you must not carry more than the vehicle licence allows.
- B. Ask them to sit in the back. Condition 5.17 bans carrying an unaccompanied child in the front seat. Appendix A condition 4.1 says the same for a child under 16 with no adult.
- C. A satellite navigation screen. Condition 5.9 bans smoking and vaping in the vehicle, eating or drinking while driving, and moving images. The only visual display screen allowed is satellite navigation.
- A. Get the passenger's express permission. Condition 5.9 says you must not play a radio or other sound equipment, other than to talk to the operator, without the passengers' express permission.
- B. You must not have a lengthy phone conversation. Condition 5.9 says you must not have lengthy phone conversations while driving passengers, and must not use any handheld device while driving.
- D. At the beginning of each shift. Condition 5.21 says the log must be completed at the beginning of each shift, by you or the vehicle proprietor.
- B. Horn in working order. Condition 5.21 lists lights, tyres, wipers, cleanliness, bodywork, plate, discs, stickers, tariff sheet and horn.
- C. In the vehicle at all times. Condition 5.21 says the record must be kept in the vehicle at all times and shown to an Authorised Officer or Police Officer who asks.
- B. Private Hire Vehicle: not insured unless pre-booked with the operator. The policy says the Council issues door signs for the top half of the rear passenger doors, with this wording.
- A. A sign showing your operator. The policy and Appendix A condition 6.3 say the windscreen sign must show which operator you are working for. Signs with the words taxi, cab or for hire are not allowed.
- D. It is your choice, and it goes in the rear with the passenger in control. Appendix A condition 8.1 says other animals may be carried if the driver chooses, in the rear of the vehicle, in the passenger's custody and control.
- B. Not until the passenger has paid the fare. Condition 7.1 says the meter must always be visible and must not be cancelled or concealed until the passenger has paid.
- D. Give a written receipt for the fare paid. Condition 7.4 says you must give a written receipt for the fare paid if the passenger asks.
- A. £12. Condition 7.3 says you must not ask for more than the fare agreed, shown on a fare card, or shown on the meter.
- C. That they are the person who pre-booked. Condition 8.1 says you must make sure the person getting in is the correct person for the pre-booked vehicle.
- D. At the back of a hackney carriage rank. Condition 8.2 says not to wait without a booking in busy places, outside busy venues, at the front or back of hackney ranks, or in lines that look like a rank.
- B. No, the booking must first come to you from the operator. Condition 8.3 says you must not accept or consider an offer of immediate hire, even if you then pass it to the operator. Bookings must first come to you from the operator.
- C. Straight after every hiring, or as soon as you can. Condition 9.1 says to search the vehicle immediately after every hiring, or as soon as is practical.
- A. Report it to the operator and hand it over within 24 hours. Condition 9.2 says to report it to the operator and hand it to them as soon as practical, within 24 hours at most. The 48-hour police rule is for hackney carriages.
- D. You follow the passenger's advice. Condition 6.1 says you must follow the passenger's advice on where the dog travels, to best suit their needs.
- B. Display it in the vehicle, for example on the dashboard. Condition 6.2 says the notice must be displayed in the vehicle in an easily accessible place. Condition 6.3 says you must also tell your operator.
Sources
- Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy (includes vehicle and driver conditions and byelaws), Oldham Council, Revised policy took effect 21 October 2025; Word file last modified 31 July 2026. Checked 1 November 2026. https://www.oldham.gov.uk/downloads/file/8473/hackney_carriage_and_private_hire_licensing_policy