Vehicle licence

If you want to use your vehicle as a taxi or private hire vehicle in South Gloucestershire you need to get it licensed by us.

Check the cost of a vehicle licence: taxi licensing fees and charges.

You will need to renew the licence before it expires.

All vehicles must:

  • meet the required specifications
  • not be more than 5 years old
  • pass our fitness test
  • not have been written off by an insurer

Hackney carriage vehicles must have a valid MOT certificate. Private hire vehicles must have one if they are more than 3 years old.

In addition hackney carriage vehicles are legally required to be wheelchair accessible and be fitted with a sealed calibrated meter from an approve supplier.

Current approved meter companies are:

  • TS UK Bristol Ltd c/o MAN Truck and Bus, 28 Third Way, Avonmouth, Bristol, BS11 9YS phone: 0117 9717119 email: tsukbristol@hotmail.co.uk
  • Gardner Taxi Equipment Unit 4, Business Centre, Concorde Drive, Clevedon, BS21 6UH phone: 01275 874578 email: gtes@btinternet.com

If you are buying a vehicle it is your responsibility to make sure it is fully compliant with our vehicle licence conditions. If you are unsure and have any questions contact us before you commit to buying it.

All standard vehicle licence conditions are set out in our taxi and private hire licensing policy.

Vehicle fitness test

Your vehicle must pass our fitness test before you can apply for your vehicle licence.

Use our checklist to make sure you are ready to book.

To book the test, complete and send a request for a vehicle fitness test form to mot.bookings@southglos.gov.uk

Tests are carried out at our Broad Lane vehicle testing facility.

It costs £43.60 for a fitness test and you can have an MOT at the same time for the standard fee.

You must apply for a licence within 4 weeks of the date of the vehicle fitness test certificate.

How to apply

Once your vehicle has passed the fitness test you will need to complete a vehicle licence application form and email it with the required supporting information to taxis@southglos.gov.uk

We will contact you to arrange an appointment for you to collect your licence and pay the vehicle licence fee.

Supporting information required

You will need:

  • V5 registration document, with the correct taxation class
  • Insurance certificate (including hire and reward), valid at licence issue date
  • European Certificate of Conformity from the manufacturer or an Individual Vehicle Approval (IVA)
  • an MOT certificate from a DVSA approved testing station dated no more than 4 weeks before the application date
  • fitness test certificate dated no more than 4 weeks before the application date
  • meter calibration certificate from an approved meter company

Licensing someone else’s vehicle

If you are not the owner of the vehicle, you can still apply for it to be licensed.
You will need written permission from the owner stating that they will allow the vehicle to be used as a licensed taxi or private hire vehicle.

The owner will not be able to use it for the duration of the licence.

You can use our template of a permission letter and email or post it to us using the details on this page.

Transfer your licence

If you have sold your vehicle, you can transfer the licence. You should complete a transfer application form and give the paper licence to the new owner.

The new owner must email taxis@southglos.gov.uk to arrange an appointment with us.

Documents to bring to the appointment:
• new insurance certificate
• new keeper slip or log book
• receipt for the purchase in the new owner’s name
• paper vehicle licence to hand in

These must be the original documents.

The previous owner is not required to attend the appointment if the transfer application form has been completed and the paper licence given to the new owner to hand in.

Vehicle rules

Read about what you can and cannot do with your vehicle below.

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Licence plates and signage

Plates must be displayed at all times even if you are using your vehicle for social purposes.

It is a licence condition and both plates must be displayed unless you have an exemption. To apply for an exemption to displaying your plates on your private hire vehicle, you should complete and send a plate exemption request form to us by email.

Read our guidance document for more information about licence plates and signage requirements.

Lost or stolen plates

If you think your plates have been stolen, you need to report this to the police and get a crime reference number.

If you have just lost your plates then you do not need to report it to the police. You should complete and send us a lost plates, badges or paper licence notification form by email.

You will then be given an appointment to come into our office and pay for your replacement plates and licence.

Windows

Your vehicle is only allowed to have manufactured or factory fitted privacy glass. Aftermarket tints are not allowed and must be removed before applying for a licence. Any other modifications will be considered on a case-by-case basis. You will need to email us your enquiry.

CCTV

You must let us know before installing cameras in your vehicle. You will need to sign a partnership agreement on the management of in-car CCTV camera systems. Read more about this in our taxi and private hire licensing policy.

Door signs

You are not required to have door signs.

Spare wheels, run flats and inflation kits

You must have a spare wheel, run flat or working inflation kit in your car at all times. Without it, the licence can be refused or suspended until you put one in your vehicle.

Lost property

You should check the vehicle for any property which may have accidentally been left there by customers. Any high value items such as phones and laptops should be taken to a local police station.

For other items there is a TAXI – Lost and Found Bristol Facebook group for property left in taxis. The expectation is that private hire operators will sort out their own found property as they should know who the customer was.

Payments and card machines

You can set a minimum card payment as long as you give the customer an option of paying cash for the journey. However, you cannot charge additional money because someone is paying by card.

You can view the table of tariffs and fares for hackney carriage vehicles.

Smoking

Smoking is not allowed in a licensed vehicle, whether the driver is working or not. If smoking is witnessed in a licensed vehicle the person smoking will be fined. If the person smoking is the driver then they may also have penalty points added to their licence.

Renting vehicles from third parties

Both the driver and vehicle owner are responsible for the vehicle if it is rented from a third party and has a problem such as defective tyres. If you are using a vehicle with poorly maintained tyres (damaged, below the legal limit or wrongly inflated) you are putting yourself, your passengers and the public at risk.

If you are stopped by the police, DVLA penalty points may be added to your DVLA and taxi and private hire licence.

Bus lanes

There are 11 fixed bus lane enforcement cameras in South Gloucestershire. You should check the individual bus lane signs to see if you are able to use it as some lanes are not designated for hackney carriage or private hire vehicles.

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Report an accident with your vehicle

Once your vehicle is licensed, if at any time it is involved in an accident or collision you must tell us immediately or the next working day at the latest.

Complete and return a vehicle accident report form

Contact us

If you have any questions email taxis@southglos.gov.uk

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