Castle Point Borough Council updates taxi and private hire licence plates and livery
- Perry Richardson
- 1 day ago
- 2 min read
Castle Point Borough Council has begun rolling out updated licence plates and vehicle livery for licensed taxis and private hire vehicles, introducing a new council logo across identification markings used by drivers operating in the borough.
The changes apply to both hackney carriages and private hire vehicles and are intended to make it easier for passengers to identify correctly licensed vehicles, particularly during the busy Christmas and New Year period. The council confirmed the new designs are now being issued, with local hackney carriage driver Shaid Shah among the first to receive the updated plates.
Under the revised scheme, hackney carriages continue to display white licence plates at the front and rear of the vehicle, alongside white door stickers carrying licence details and an illuminated roof light. Private hire vehicles retain yellow rear plates and do not display roof lights, with door signage reminding passengers that journeys must be pre-booked through a licensed operator.
The council said the refreshed branding is designed to provide clearer visual reassurance to passengers while reinforcing the legal distinction between taxis that can be hailed on the street or at ranks and private hire vehicles, which must be booked in advance. Licensing teams nationally have raised concerns in recent years about passenger confusion, particularly during peak trading periods.
Council rolls out new branding on vehicles as part of wider passenger safety messaging ahead of Christmas
Alongside the livery update, the council has issued renewed safety advice to the public, encouraging passengers to check licence plates before entering vehicles and to confirm that the vehicle registration, colour and type match any private hire booking. Passengers are also advised to ask to see the driver’s badge, which should show Castle Point licensing details for locally licensed vehicles.
The authority has emphasised that private hire vehicles should never be boarded without a booking, regardless of how legitimate they may appear, and that passengers should always confirm their name and destination with the driver before the journey begins. Hackney carriage users are advised to use official taxi ranks where possible.
Castle Point Borough Council said the updated plates and livery will be phased in as vehicles renew or replace licences, rather than requiring an immediate change across the entire fleet. Existing licence conditions remain in force, and enforcement action may be taken where vehicles fail to display correct identification.
Any concerns relating to licensed vehicles or drivers can be reported directly to the council’s licensing team, which said it would continue to carry out compliance checks over the festive period as passenger demand increases.
