West Lancashire taxi and private-hire licensing

RESEARCHED AUTHORITY

West Lancashire

West Lancashire Borough Council · Sources checked 13 September 2026

Driver licensing

Official route/source found

West Lancashire issues separate private-hire and hackney-carriage driver licences and offers both together under one dual application; the current policy says their applicant requirements are the same. Applicants arrange a licensing appointment, submit the relevant form and fee, disclose convictions and undergo council checks against DBS and DVLA information. The live driver page requires an online enhanced DBS application, a Group 2 medical and statutory declaration; the policy's application procedure also requires council safeguarding training. Three years is the normal term, with a shorter licence considered on written request. Renewals are normally prompted 28 days before expiry and require DBS Update Service registration and an HMRC tax-check code.

• Drivers - private hire and hackney carriage

Vehicle licensing

Official route/source found

Vehicle licences last 12 months. The current page quotes PH new £251.37 and HC £276.73, including plates and one inspection; a failed inspection may incur a garage retest charge up to £45. PH fees split into application £153.34 and grant £98.03; HC £152.20 and £124.53. The grant portion is refundable if refused when paid upfront. PH vehicles display yellow rear plates and operator door signs; HC green rear plates and an illuminated availability sign. Check approved vehicle list and specifications before purchase.

• Current vehicle licensing page

Operator licensing

Official evidence found; detail still to confirm

The official operator page requires an appointment/application pack, statutory declaration, DBS and DVLA checks, and normally issues a five-year licence. Its directly linked operator conditions are dated April 2010: planning permission is required; passenger waiting space must be separated from operations/driver rest areas, clean, lit and ventilated; record each hiring before departure and retain records six months. Maintain vehicle/driver lists, notify changes immediately, retain vehicle insurance copies, investigate complaints and report convictions/address changes within seven days. These are explicit currently linked legacy conditions, not a newly adopted 2026 policy. The page's DBS level, annual renewal of operator criminal checks, booking/dispatch staff vetting and modern electronic-record conditions remain insufficiently specified. Its displayed fee figures are older than the independently reviewed 2026/27 fee schedule and are deliberately not reused here.

• West Lancashire council operator source
• Current official operator licensing requirements and policy evidence
• Current official operator licensing requirements and policy evidence

Licensing fees

Official route/source found

The current-linked final 2026–27 schedule lists three-year driver licences at £252.57 new (£179.32 initial plus £73.25 on success) and £201.86 renewal (£131.21 plus £70.65). Twelve-month hackney vehicles including plate cost £276.73 new/£242.71 renewal; private-hire vehicles £251.37/£226.17. Five-year operator fees by fleet size are £226.17 for 1–10 vehicles, £327.59 for 11–20, £520.48 for 21–30, £665.66 for 31–40, £824.74 for 41–50 and £959.97 above 50. Knowledge resit, replacement badge/plate and ownership transfer each cost £33.81. DBS/Update Service and medical charges are additional.

• Current licensing fee download hub
• Final licensing fees 2026–27

Taxi tariff

Official evidence found; detail still to confirm

The current vehicle page links a notice dated 19 June 2023, stating conditional commencement by 3 July 2023 if no objections. Its five bands show flags £3/£3.75/£4.50/£5.25/£6 for first 630 yards, then respectively 10p/12p/15p/17p/20p per 105 yards; waiting uses the same penny amounts per 30 seconds. T2 concerns 20:00–05:00 and bank-holiday periods; T3 out-of-boundary travel; T4 midnight–05:00 in the circumstances specified for T3; T5 festive 18:00–06:00 periods. Soiling £40. This is dated linked evidence, not proof of the complete current fare. Full operative card, exact holiday spans and the statutory no-objection outcome remain unresolved, so these figures must not be used as an unqualified current quote.

• Linked notice dated 19 June 2023, conditional 3 July 2023 start

Mandatory qualifications

Official route/source found

Both hackney and private-hire applicants take knowledge sections on roads, English/numeracy, law, customer care, disability and safeguarding; failure of one section fails the test. Three consecutive failures require a twelve-week wait before reapplication. Safeguarding training is required before new grant; renewal procedures require training where not previously completed, so a fixed repeat cycle is not established. The policy does not impose an additional practical taxi test or NVQ/BTEC. Group 2 medical standards apply. Operative policy began 1 October 2022, with amendments approved 2 April 2024.

• Current-linked policy version 3
• Policy adoption and amendments