Driver licence renewal - guidance notes

Guidance notes
Hackney Carriage/Private Hire Driver’s Licence Renewal Application

Please read these notes before you apply.

1. You must have held a full UK driving licence for at least 3 years. To have such a licence you must be someone who is assessed as a ‘fit and proper’ person to hold, and retain, such a licence

2. When assessing applications, we must take account of the law that covers taxis and private hire vehicles, namely the Town Police Clauses Act 1874 and Part II of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976.

3. We carry out Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) and Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) checks on everyone who applies; applicants will have to pay additional fees to cover this if you do not have the online update service.

4. You must supply the following documents when filling in the online application:

• If you have the Online Update service for your DBS, you will need to supply the certificate number and a photo of the certificate. If you do not have the online update service, you will be prompted to call us to book an appointment to come and complete a paper DBS application.
• If you have it, your completed D4 Group 2 Medical Form. If your medical assessment has not yet been completed, you can send this to us later.
• valid passport (and visas)
• drivers licence including an 8-digit code so you licence can be checked
• recent proof of address i.e. utility bill, bank statement; a mobile phone bill will not be accepted.
• evidence of your national insurance number (i.e. payslip or tax return)
• if you have been in the UK for less than five years, you will need to provide written proof from your embassy or consulate showing that you are of good character; this also applies if you have been out of the UK for six or more months consecutively in the last five years.

You must provide all of these documents. If you fail to produce any of them, we will not be able to deal with your application.

Payment

5. We accept card or cheque. The licence fee is set by the Council and it may change from time to time. If the fee is due to the Council, we must advertise those changes.

Safeguarding and Disability Awareness Training

6. This is required every three years and is a mandatory element of your licence. Applicants must book their own courses, which must be successfully completed by that applicant. These courses are subject to additional costs. Please contact the Licensing team for further information.

Medical Examination

7. Before we can issue your licence, you must have had a Group 2 medical examination. This must be done by a doctor who has access to your full medical records; this will usually be your general practitioner. They will need to examine you and fill in the attached confidential medical questionnaire. You must arrange and pay for this examination yourself, and you must provide that report document as a mandatory part of your application.

8. The medical report will be valid for the period of your licence; unless you are over the age of 65 or have a medical condition. If you are required to have a medical annually, it is your responsibility to remember when this is due; you will not be reminded.

Renewing your licence

9. Your licence will stay in force until the ‘expiry date’ shown, unless you surrender it, or it is revoked or suspended.

10. You must apply to renew your licence before the expiry date. If you do not, we will have to treat it as a new application, this means that you will have to start the whole process again. Starting a new application requires further mandatory documentation and testing, including but not limited to:

• English language assessments
• Taxi “knowledge” tests
• Driving assessments

All additional mandatory aspects of a new or “Grant” of a taxi driver’s licence is subject to additional fees at the cost of the applicant.

Criminal convictions

11. In accordance with the conditions attached to the licence, new applicants and existing holders of a driver licence and operator licence, holders are required to notify the licensing department of the Council in writing, by letter or email within 7 days of his/her being: -

• Arrested or requested to voluntarily attend a police station for interview or formal questioning;
• Administered with a caution, binding over, reprimand or final warning;
• Charged with an offence or summonsed to court;
• Convicted of an offence;
• Issued with a Fixed Penalty Notice;
• Receiving a DVLA driving licence endorsement;
• The subject of any civil proceedings, orders or injunctions.

The law allows us to check to see if you have a criminal record and to find out the details of any of the above. We will keep any information we receive strictly confidential while we are making our decision, and we will only keep the information as long as we need to.

We do not accept DBS disclosures from other organisations.

Note: If you fail to register to the DBS update service, there may be a delay in your licence being issued at the renewal stage and this delay will prevent you from working as a taxi driver.

12. Telling us about anything outlined in section 11 will not automatically stop you getting a licence; unless we consider that the information means you are not a ‘fit and proper’ person to hold a licence. See the criteria regarding previous convictions.

If you would like to discuss the effect of anything declared in section 20, please call 01295 753744 for advice.

Penalty point scheme

13. The council has a penalty point scheme. This is intended to make drivers and operators more aware of their duties under the law; and the Council’s conditions for drivers, vehicles and private hire operators. View the taxi policy and relevant appendices for more information on the scheme.

Right of appeal

Any persons aggrieved by the refusal of the Council to grant a licence or by any conditions attached to it, may appeal to a Magistrates Court within 21 days of notification by the Council.

Service standards – taxi licensing

The licensing team deal with many licences in addition to those relating to the taxi trade.

Therefore, an appointment system is in place and drivers, vehicle owners and operators will only be seen on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays between 9:30am and 3:30pm. In exceptional circumstances, appointments may be arranged at other times.

The Licensing team can be contacted between 9:00am and 4.00pm Monday to Friday by:

• Telephone: 01295 753744
• Email: licensing@cherwell-dc.gov.uk

Please ensure that when leaving a message, you provide your name, contact number and the reason for your call. If the office does not have this information, your call will not be returned.

The licensing department aim to:

• issue a hackney carriage/private hire driver’s licence within five working days of the application process being satisfactorily completed;
• issue a hackney carriage/private hire vehicle licence within five working days of the date of receipt of a complete and valid application;
• issue a temporary hackney carriage/private hire vehicle licence within two working days of the date of receipt of a complete and valid application;
• issue a private hire operator’s licence within five working days of the application process being satisfactorily completed;
• respond to complaints within two working days. If a complainant is dissatisfied with the outcome of their complaint, they will be referred to the council’s corporate complaints procedure;
• jointly enforce the Cherwell Council enforcement and neighbouring Councils policies, whereby officers from each council are authorised to do so;
• keep the taxi and private hire trade informed about any changes;
• keep the taxi and private hire trade informed about any changes in the law;
• ensure that information held on files and databases is only disclosed to other agencies in accordance with data protection law and where there is a legal obligation to do so.