If you intend to operate a taxi or private hire car in North Ayrshire, you will need a taxi driver's licence. This means a licence is required for the vehicle and for each driver employed to drive the taxi.
To be eligible for a taxi driver's licence you must:
How to apply
You will need:
There are 2 different classes of driver licences:
- to drive a taxi
- to drive a private hire car
Apply for a licence or renewal
If you're renewing your licence, you can continue to operate as a taxi driver past your licence expiry date, as long as you have applied for a renewal prior to the date of expiry. You have 28 days after expiry to provide proof of a 'right to work in the U.K.'
Fees
All fees can be found on our licence fees webpage.
Please note: If your application is refused or granted for a shorter period than you applied, the fee will not be refunded or reduced.
What happens next?
When we have received your application and fee:
- we will inform Police Scotland
- your application will be advertised on this website to allow members of the public to make any objections or representations
If there are no objections or representations, the application can be granted under 'delegated powers'. This means that the decision to grant the Licence is made by an officer with delegated powers.
If there is any adverse comment, the application must be referred to a Hearing of the Licensing Committee. You will be told about the Hearing and will be able to make representations in favour of your application.
Licence conditions
Following the Licensing Committee of 16 March 2016 Condition 4 of the Taxi Driver's Licence was amended. The licence is granted subject to the following conditions (PDF, 241kb). In some cases the council may apply special conditions.
Conditions will be set out in the licence document you will be given. If these are broken, the licence holder can be charged by Police Scotland and the Licensing Committee can suspend the licence after a hearing. You will be invited to such a hearing and will be able to speak to the committee.
Difference between taxis and private hire cars
Taxi
- has a roof sign
- blue and white plates
- taxis must have meter which is set to the maximum fare scale, agreed by North Ayrshire Council
- only a taxi can pick up passengers in a public place, it can wait in a taxi rank or be hailed in the street
Private hire car
- no roof sign
- green and yellow plates and door crests
- can only be used for hire by private arrangement - it is a criminal offence for a private hire car to pick up a passenger in a public place unless it has been previously hired to do so.
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