Watford Borough Council

A licence is required before any person can drive a licensed private hire vehicle. Private hire vehicles may only be booked through a private hire vehicle operator licensed by the Council.

Before a licence is granted the applicant must satisfy the Council that:

• He/she is a fit and proper person to hold a licence
• He/she is medically fit
• He/she has attained the age of 21 years
• He/she has held a full driver's licence (not a provisional licence) granted to the applicant under Part III of the Road Traffic Act 1972 authorising him/her to drive a motor car for at least 24 months prior to the date of the application
• He/she must pass a police criminality check carried out by the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) to ensure safety to the public. (Not every conviction would prevent a licence being granted). 

Contact details below for obtaining our application form. Once the form has been completed, you need to visit our offices, bringing with you the following documentation:

• the completed application form
• your DVLA Driving Licence (original - not a photocopy) showing your current address
• your passport or birth certificate (if not available, five other types of identification with your name and address, not less than three months old)
• two colour passport type photographs taken within the last month
• one large colour photograph of head and shoulders only, measuring five by four inches
• payment of the fee for the CRB check (fees can be checked through the fees and charges link at the bottom of the page)
• evidence you are registered with HM Customs and Revenue as self-employed.

Applications will not be accepted without production of the above.

The medical form needn't be completed at this stage. You may wait until the necessary checks have been returned to us and you have passed your topographical test (also known as the knowledge test). It is worth noting that, should you decide to withdraw your application for whatever reason, the fee paid by you to your GP is non-refundable. Therefore, it is entirely up to you to decide at which point during the application process that you have the medical.

Upon production of the forms at the licensing office, you will be asked to complete a form to enable us to check with the Criminal Records Bureau for any records held against you. Please be aware that we normally allow approximately up to eight weeks from receipt of your application for return of these checks as this is the average time that they take. We also conduct a check with the DVLA, Swansea.

Once your application has been accepted and the fee has been paid, we will send you details of the driving assessment conducted by the Driver Standards Agency and knowledge test (details in the application pack).

You can apply for either a dual licence, which allows you to drive private hire vehicles and hackney carriages, or you can apply for a private hire only drivers licence, which just allows you to drive private hire vehicles. You need to indicate which type of licence you are applying for on the application form. The Council issues both licences for three years.