Taxi Licensing

 There are two types of taxis that the Council provide licences for. These are:

• Hackney Carriage Vehicles
• Private Hire Vehicles 

Hackney Carriage Vehicles 

These vehicles may pick up at formal taxi ranks or be flagged down by people.  They may also be pre-booked by personal or telephone requests.

They must exhibit a yellow plate on the rear and they must also have a roof sign.

All vehicles are fitted with a fare meter which is calibrated in accordance with fees formally agreed by the Council and periodically checked.

A standard fee or "flag drop" is made for picking up a passenger and then the meter advances through distance or duration of the journey. 

Vehicles must be no older than five years when first licensed as a Hackney carriage.

Private Hire Vehicles

These vehicles may only be used to pick passengers up as a result of a call to a licensed Private Hire Operator.  The vehicles are not insured to pick up passengers other than those who have pre-booked the journey.  Private Hire vehicles may not wait at taxi ranks or accept work from people that flag them down.

Private Hire vehicles must exhibit a green licence plate on their rear and may not be a roof sign fitted to these vehicles.

Vehicles must be no older than five years when first licensed for Private Hire use.