Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Drivers Policy
Introduction
A combined licence is issued in the Great Yarmouth borough which authorises the driver to drive either a Hackney Carriage or a Private Hire vehicle provided that these vehicles are licenced by the Borough Council.
Driver's Licences shall be valid for a maximum term of three years (unless a shorter period is deemed appropriate by the Borough Council or by the Immigration Act).
Fit and proper person
Sections 51 and 59 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 require that 'A district council shall not grant a drivers' licence to drive a Private Hire or Hackney Carriage vehicle unless they are satisfied that an applicant is a fit and proper person'.
The aim of the licensing regime is to ensure that, so far as possible, those licensed to drive either a Hackney Carriage or Private Hire vehicle are suitable persons to do so. Suitable means that they are safe drivers with good driving records and adequate experience, sober, mentally and physically fit. They also should be honest individuals who would not take advantage of their position to abuse, assault or defraud customers. The general term used in taxi licensing to describe this person is 'fit and proper'.
The test when considering whether an applicant/licence holder is 'fit and proper' is to pose oneself the following question, 'Without any prejudice, and based on the information before you, would you allow a person for whom you care, regardless of their condition, to travel alone in a vehicle driven by this person at any time of the day or night?'.
In deciding whether the applicant is a fit and proper person the Borough Council have regard to a number of factors as outlined below. Each case will be considered individually on its merits. The Borough Council does not have a limit on the number of Driver Licences issued.
Licensing criteria and pre-requisites
| Requirement | Details |
|---|---|
| Be 21 years or older | |
| Have the right to work in the UK | A right to work check under the immigration Act 2016 will be carried out before a licence is issued. This requires a face-to-face meeting with a member of the Licensing team. Authorised documentation must be provided to prove that the applicant has the right to work in the UK and the council will use the right to work check list provided by the Home Office to establish this. |
| Hold a full DVLA driver's licence which has been valid for the past twelve (12) months | The applicant will need to supply their DVLA driving licence with your current address. A check will need to be carried out to ensure that an applicant's DVLA driving licence is valid. The applicant will need to register on line at https://www.gov.uk/view-driving-licence and submit the code to the Licensing Section. Please note that this code is only valid for 21 days, therefore should not be obtained until the applicant has completed and received all relevant documents. If the applicant does not have access to the internet, help will be available from the Licensing Team. |
Pass a local knowledge test of the Borough or in the case of horse drawn hackney carriage drivers a knowledge test relating to animal welfare | The test consists of questions on the applicant's knowledge of the law, conditions of licensing, basic numeracy, popular destinations and local knowledge of the borough. The ability to communicate effectively in English will also be verified during this test. This means that Licensed drivers must be able to understand written and verbal instructions and requests and be able to respond appropriately. The test fee is non-refundable and must be paid at the time of booking. An 80% pass rate is required and, should an applicant fail the test, each subsequent re-test will cost a further fee. All applicants for horse drawn hackney carriages driver's licences will be required to undertake and pass a knowledge test relating to animal welfare (the required pass rate will be 100%) |
| Provide an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service Certificate (DBS) | A DBS enhanced disclosure must be completed to provide a full record of any cautions, convictions or intelligence held on the applicant or driver's record. Subscription to the DBS update service will also be required to enable regular criminal records checks. All criminal record information must be considered for this occupation type, whether or not it might be considered 'spent' under other circumstances. Information revealed on a DBS will only be used for the purpose of determining an application in relation to hackney carriages or private hire licensing. For applicants who have lived outside of the UK, it will be necessary to obtain a certificate of good conduct from their embassy or home country, or to obtain an exemption from this requirement from the council. The certificate must be in English and provided at the applicant's expense. This is in addition to the DBS check. |
| Undertake a medical to group 2 standard showing that the applicant is physically fit to drive a hackney carriage or private hire vehicle | A medical will be required upon initial application and must be carried out by a registered Medical Practitioner. The medical standard required will be that of a Group 2 driver (DVLA Drivers Medical Group) the same standards that are applicable to other professional drivers. Subsequent medicals will be required at age 45, then every five years after the age of 45 and then annually from the age of 65 years. A driver under the age of 65 with a controlled medical condition may also be required to undergo a full medical annually. Medicals can be obtained either by going to a family GP or from a central agency. Applicants will need to pay for this service direct to the provider - there is no standard fee for this service. If you have a Group 2 medical for other purposes (i.e. HGV or PSV Licence) it may be able to be used for your taxi driver's licence. Please discuss this with a member of the licensing team. |
| Attend an approved safeguarding awareness training session | All licensed drivers must be aware of the responsibility with regards to the safeguarding of vulnerable groups and will be required to undertake safeguarding training as prescribed by Great Yarmouth Borough Council. A fee is payable to attend a training session, |
| Horse drawn hackney carriage drivers licences only - Code of Practice Road Driving Assessment for single horse urban environment | This assessment is provided by the British Driving Society Ltd and the applicant will need to pay for this service direct. Information and costs can be found at |
| Information regarding previous licences, revocations, or refusals | The Borough Council has signed up to the National Register of Refusals and Revocations (NR3 register). This means that when an application for a taxi driver's licence is refused, or when an existing taxi driver's licence is revoked, that information will be placed on the register. The details of all new applicants will also be checked against the information held on the register. |
| Completed application form | |
| Passport-sized photo | |
| Payment of prescribed fee |
| Requirement | Details |
|---|---|
| Medical fitness | Medicals will be required at age 45, then every five years after the age of 45 and then annually from the age of 65 years. A driver under the age of 65 with a controlled medical condition may also be required to undergo a full medical annually. |
| Convictions and Criminal History | The DBS Update Service will be utilised. This will enable regular checks to be made by the Licensing Team. Drivers who have not subscribed to the update service will be required to complete a new enhanced DBS disclosure every 6 months. |
| DVLA Licence check | A check will need to be carried out to ensure that an applicant's DVLA driving licence is valid. The applicant will need to register on line at https://www.gov.uk/view-driving-licence and submit the code to the Licensing Section. Please note that this code is only valid for 21 days, therefore should not be obtained until the applicant has completed and received all relevant documents. If you do not have access to the internet, help will be available from the Licensing Team |
| Information regarding previous licences, revocations, or refusals | The National Register of Refusals and Revocations (NR3 register) will be checked on licence renewal. Where an existing licence is revoked the authority will automatically record this decision on NR3 |
| Safeguarding | All licensed drivers must be aware of the responsibility with regards Safeguarding of vulnerable groups and will be required to undertake Safeguarding Training as prescribed by Great Yarmouth Borough Council. A fee is payable to attend a training session. Drivers will also have an obligation to adhere to the code of conduct published by the Borough Council in relation to safeguarding. |
| Code from HM Revenues and Customs (HMRC) | Applicants will be required to request a tax check from HMRC. HMRC will advise as to what information is to be provided and once satisfied will issue a 9-character code. This code is to be provided to the Licensing Team when applying to renew the licence. |
| Completed application form | |
| Passport-sized photo | |
| Payment of prescribed fee | Up to date fees can be found online at https://www.great-yarmouth.gov.uk/article/2393/Taxi-licensing. |
Convictions
The public are entitled to have the utmost confidence in drivers of taxis and private hire vehicles and the Borough Council must ensure that only fit and proper persons obtain a drivers licence.
The Borough Council has adopted a policy on convictions in relation to taxi and private hire vehicle drivers. It is recommended that persons with convictions read the policy before applying for a licence. (see Appendix II ) They may also wish to speak to the Licensing Team for advice.
The occupation of taxi and private hire licensing is excluded from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. Therefore, all convictions, regardless of how long ago may be taken in consideration when determining applications.
Combined Driver Licence renewals will be accepted up to one calendar month before they are due to expire.
General licence conditions
All drivers shall operate strictly within the terms of any licence issued by the Borough Council.
Any requirements of legislation, which effects the operations being carried out under the terms of this licence, shall be regarded as if they are conditions of this licence.
It is the driver's responsibility to provide the following information throughout the term of their licence:
- annual DVLA check - a driver shall produce their DVLA driving licence for inspection by an authorised officer annually and at any point during the period of the licence when requested
- medical certificate in accordance with conditions
The Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 provides that any person who acts in contravention of the provisions of Part II of the Act shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine. In addition to such action, whether or not resulting in criminal proceedings being taken, such act may lead to the suspension or revocation of an existing licence or refusal to renew such a licence.
National Register of Taxi Licence Refusals and Revocations (NR3)
The Licensing authority provides information to the National Register of Taxi Licence Refusals and Revocations (NR3), a mechanism for licensing authorities to share details of individuals who have had a hackney carriage or private hire licence revoked, or an application for one refused. This is necessary in assessing whether an individual is a fit and proper person to hold a hackney carriage or private hire licence.
Therefore:
- where a hackney carriage/private hire licence is revoked, or an application for one refused, the authority will automatically record this decision on NR3
- all applications for a new licence or licence renewal will automatically be checked on NR3
- if a search of NR3 indicates a match with an applicant, the authority will seek further information about the entry on the register from the authority which recorded it
- any information received as a result of an NR3 search will only be used in respect of the specific license application and will not be retained beyond the determination of that application
Information recorded on NR3 itself will be limited to:
- name
- date of birth
- address and contact details
- National Insurance number
- driving licence number
- decision taken
- date of decision
- date decision effective
Information will be retained on NR3 for a period of 25 years.
Convictions, criminal offences and serious illness
- the driver shall notify the Borough Council in writing if he/she receives any summons, charge, conviction, caution, fixed penalty notice or is arrested, in all cases within seven days of receiving such - the written notification should include the following details where relevant:
- offence or alleged offence
- date, place and time of offence or alleged offence
- whether acting as a hackney or private hire
- if motoring offence:
- whether paying passengers carried
- speed or alleged speed
- speed limit for road
- punishment, for example amount of fine, number of penalty points issued etc
- whether speed awareness course undertaken
- the Driver must immediately inform and in any case within seven (7) days, disclose to the Council in writing, details of any serious illness or any change in medical fitness to drive during the period of his licence
- the Council will have the power through its Authorised Officer/Agent to take drivers off the road in serious criminal offences and in cases of serious illness especially any change in medical fitness to drive
- for the avoidance of doubt such notification is made when it is received by the Licensing Manager in writing, not when it is sent by the driver
- the onus is on the driver to ensure the disclosure is received accordingly
- the driver making a disclosure should obtain a receipt or other proof that the Council has received the information
- if a Driver accrues 9 or more points in a 3 year period on his/her DVLA driving licence, they will be required to appear before the Licensing Committee in order for their continued suitability to hold a driver's licence to be assessed
- any driver who receives, during the currency of their licence, a conviction for drink driving may have their licence suspended by an Authorised Officer
- depending on the circumstances or the number of penalty points accrued on their DVLA driver's licence, drivers may be referred to the Licensing Committee - in doing so, the Committee must have regard to all convictions, cautions, charges, driving convictions, complaints of unacceptable conduct/behaviour, breach of licence conditions and other convictions obtained
- Drivers should be aware that if they fail to comply with this requirement it may prevent the Borough Council from renewing their driver's licence under delegated authority
Change of address
The driver must inform the Council of any change of address, in writing, before the change of address, where possible, but not more than seven (7) days after in any case of such a change.
Deposit of Licence
If a driver is permitted or employed to drive a vehicle of which the Operator is someone other than himself/ or herself, he or she shall, before driving that vehicle, deposit his private hire licence with that Operator for retention by him until such time as the driver ceases to be permitted or employed to drive the vehicle or any other vehicle.
- the Operator must return such licence to the driver when he ceases to drive any vehicle operated by that Operator
Equality Act 2010
Section 165
All drivers of designated vehicles must comply with Section 165 of the Equality Act 2010. This Act sets out the duties placed on drivers of designated wheelchair accessible taxis and PHVs. The duties are:
- to carry the passenger while in the wheelchair
- not to make any additional charge for doing so
- if the passenger chooses to sit in a passenger seat to carry the wheelchair
- to take such steps as are necessary to ensure that the passenger is carried in safety and reasonable comfort
- to give the passenger such mobility assistance as is reasonably required
The Act then goes on to define mobility assistance as giving assistance:
- to enable the passenger to get into or out of the vehicle
- to enable the passenger to get in and out of the vehicle while in a wheelchair
- to load the passenger's luggage into or out of the vehicle
- to load the wheelchair into or out of the vehicle should the passenger not wish to remain in the wheelchair
Any driver of a designated vehicle with a medical reason for not complying with these requirements must obtain a medical certificate from a registered medical practitioner to exempt him. An application must then be made to the Council for an Exemption Certificate. A payment for such certificate(s) may be charged.
Section 168
This section imposes duties on the driver of a taxi which has been hired -
- by or for a disabled person who is accompanied by an assistance dog
- by another person who wishes to be accompanied by a disabled person with an assistance dog.
The driver must:
- carry the disabled person's dog and allow it to remain with that person
- not make any additional charge for doing so
Any breach of the Equality Act will be treated seriously. All drivers where failings under the act are proven may be prosecuted and will be referred to Licensing Committee for a review of their licence with consideration given to revocation.
Operators
All drivers are responsible to check that the Operators through whom they are working has a current Operator's licence.
The driver shall notify the Borough Council in writing of any change in the private hire Operator he/she is working under the control of within 7 days of the change taking place.
Passenger Transport Badge Holders
If a licensed driver holds a badge with a County Council to carry passengers on school or other contracts, and that badge is suspended or revoked by the County Council, the driver shall notify the Borough Council of the suspension or revocation, in writing, within 72 hours.
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