Tameside taxi and private-hire licensing

RESEARCHED AUTHORITY

Tameside

Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council · Sources checked 13 September 2026

Driver licensing

Official evidence found; detail still to confirm

The live driver page directs new and renewing licence holders to the relevant application checks and says renewal applicants must complete the HMRC tax check where applicable.

• Tameside council driver source

Vehicle licensing

Official route/source found

PH applicants submit an application/statutory declaration, fee, suitable hire-and-reward insurance and the vehicle for council inspection. Operation must be through a Tameside-licensed operator. Category A/B/S write-offs are excluded; category N requires pre-repair photographs, a qualified engineer's report and independent repair/roadworthiness evidence. PH vehicles cannot be FX/TX types, are right-hand drive saloon/estate/MPV/minibus types with at least four passenger seats and no side-facing seats. Drivers must keep a daily vehicle-check log; structural/mechanical alterations need written council approval.

• Current vehicle requirements

Operator licensing

Official evidence found; detail still to confirm

Current official operator pages require application/statutory declaration, fitness assessment, fee, business plan, suitable vehicle signage and a business name/telephone number not confusingly similar to an approved operator. Applicants must intend to use Tameside-licensed drivers and vehicles. Booking-office premises need planning permission; public waiting areas require public liability insurance, while home operation without public access does not. The application page calls for a solicitor-completed statutory declaration where the applicant is neither a vehicle proprietor nor a licensed private-hire driver. The detailed conditions still refer to a 'Standard CRB Check if required', and the two pages differ over whether the declaration is universal or conditional. These legacy criminal-check/application differences have not been resolved by a current operator-specific DBS checklist, so the field remains partial rather than relabelling old CRB wording as a verified modern DBS requirement.

• Current official operator licensing requirements and policy evidence
• Current official operator licensing requirements and policy evidence

Licensing fees

Official evidence found; detail still to confirm

The council fee schedule says it was updated April 2026 and publishes driver, vehicle and operator charges. It lists £265 for a new one-year single badge, £286 for both badges, £55 DBS and £60 for the new-driver training course; licence length and extra checks can alter the total.

Taxi tariff

Official route/source found

Current official HTML states operative March 2023. Day 06:00–23:00: £2.50 first 139 yards, then 20p per started 139 yards; waiting 20p/40 seconds. Night 23:00–06:00: £3 first 108 yards, then 20p per started 108 yards; waiting 20p/32 seconds. Holiday: £3 first 91 yards, then 20p per started 91 yards; waiting 20p/27 seconds. Holiday windows are Christmas Eve 14:00–27 December 06:00, New Year's Eve 14:00–2 January 06:00 and other public holidays midnight-to-midnight. Additional passengers/animals 20p; capacity-based extras caps range 60p for four seats to £1.40 for eight. No extras for wheelchairs, prams, assistance dogs or under-12s. Soiling £30; airport barriers payable by hirer. The tariff also covers qualifying Greater Manchester destinations within four miles of Tameside's boundary.

• Current official fare table

Mandatory qualifications

Official evidence found; detail still to confirm

The April 2026 fee schedule explicitly lists a New Taxi Driver Training Course, while the driver page links the council’s checks and policies. Confirm booking, eligibility and pass requirements with the council before applying.

• Tameside council mandatoryQualifications source