Taxi licensing - private hire operators

Apply for or renew a private hire operator licence.

All journeys with licensed private hire vehicles must be pre-booked with a licensed private hire operator. No person or company may accept private hire bookings without first obtaining a private hire operator licence.

A licensed private hire driver cannot accept any bookings unless they work for a licensed private hire operator.

A licensed private hire operator can only operate drivers and vehicles licensed by North Yorkshire Council. Private hire vehicles licensed by one of the former North Yorkshire district and borough councils may be despatched to a customer by any private hire operator licensed by one of the former district and borough councils.

The contract for the hire of the vehicle is made between the customer and the operator (not the driver).

An operator may pass a booking to another licensed private hire operator, provided that the operator is also licensed by the same licensing authority.

A private hire operator licence is address specific. The licensed address of the booking office or base must be located within the geographical area covered by North Yorkshire Council.

What will it cost?

The cost of a private hire operator licence will vary depending on how many private hire vehicles you will operate.

Licence duration Licence fee
New licence for five years £650
New licence for one year £240
Renewal for five years £650
Renewal for one year £240

Find out more about taxi fees and fares.

How do I pay?

You can pay online if you live in the Selby area

You can pay online if you live in the Hambleton area

For all other areas, contact us to pay in person or over the phone, please note we do not accept cash payments.

Whichever payment method you use, please use your private hire operator registration number, if renewing, and your full name as the reference and let us know you have paid.

What do I need to apply to be a private hire operator?

Read our  Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy (pdf / 675 KB) to make sure you can meet all the requirements of becoming or being a licensed private hire operator. In summary, you must:

  • meet the fit and proper person test to hold a licence - although private hire operators will not necessarily drive members of the public, they will be in possession of information about the whereabouts of some members of the public, and therefore we must be satisfied that every Private Hire Operator is a fit and proper person to hold a licence
  • to assess whether you are fit and proper we will consider various factors including information relating to:
    • your character
    • your experience as a private hire operator
    • your criminal record including, but not limited to, any motoring offences
    • whether or not you have ever been declared bankrupt
    • your knowledge of spoken and written English, the locality and rules governing licensees
    • anything else of relevance

Note, that in instances where the applicant private hire operator is a company or partnership, we will require details of all directors or partners in that company or partnership and anyone else who have an influence over the running of the business and will apply the fit and proper test to all. All private hire operators (including company directors or partners) will be subject to an annual basic Disclosure and Barring Service check, except where criminal record checks have already been made in relation to their driver or vehicle licence.

Supporting documents

You will need to supply the following with your application:

  • evidence of your right to work in the UK 
  • satisfactory basic criminal record check, you can request a basic DBS check on the government website.
  • Certificate of Good Conduct if you, including any director or partner, have lived overseas for a period of six months or more in the 10-year period leading up to the date of application
  • your Policy on employing ex-offenders involved with taking bookings and dispatching vehicles.  Note there are strict rules on who you can employ and what records you must keep.  A template policy is be available on request
  • the appropriate Public Liability Insurance if the public will have access to the premises, such as a waiting room or booking office
  • evidence of having the correct planning permission for the location from where you wish to operate. This will depend on whether or not you will have a booking office and how many vehicles you intend to operate. Before an operator's licence is granted you must satisfy us that the address from which you intend to operate is suitable and, where applicable, satisfy any conditions that may be attached to the licence in order not to disturb the ambience of the area

You will also need:

  • certificate to evidence that you have undertaken approved safeguarding training in the last three years. If you are not already a licensed driver with us we can provide you with this
  • a valid Tax Check Code (if renewing), available from HMRC’s Government Gateway.

No criminal record check or certificate of good conduct will be required if you have already been deemed suitable to currently hold a hackney carriage or private hire or combined driver badge issued by us or one of the former district or borough councils in North Yorkshire.

How do I apply?

Read our  Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy (pdf / 675 KB) to make sure you can meet all the requirements of becoming or being a licensed private hire operator before you apply and pay.

Applications will not be processed unless we are in receipt of:

  • the relevant fully completed application form, see below
  • all supporting documents listed above
  • the appropriate fee

Download the appropriate application form:

Applications should be submitted to your local office or to the local office email address, as shown on the application forms. If you are applying by email, we may still need to see you in person with some of your documents.

Bookings and dispatch staff policy and assessment 

Please see our templates for:

These templates have been produced only as a guide. Therefore, operators are not obliged to adopt these documents in their existing state. It is ultimately the operator's responsibility to set and uphold appropriate standards in relation to staff undertaking booking and dispatch duties.

How long will my application take?

We will aim to process valid applications within 5 working days of receipt of all required documents.

For renewals, applications should be made at least two weeks before the expiry date of the current licence to allow reasonable time for the application to be processed.

Any application for the renewal of a licence will not be accepted after the date of expiry. In these cases, the operator licence will cease to have effect until such a time as a new application is received and will be deemed as a new application.

Policy

 Read our hackney carriage and private hire licensing policy (pdf / 675 KB)

Legislation

Read the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act on the government website

Fees and fares

Find out about taxi fees and fares here

Report a licensing issue

Contact us to report a licensing issue.

Privacy notice

Read the privacy notice

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