TfL stops short of naming private hire firms operating exclusively to London licensing standards
- Perry Richardson
- 13 minutes ago
- 2 min read
Transport for London (TfL) has stopped short of agreeing to publish a list of private hire companies that exclusively use London-licensed drivers and vehicles for journeys undertaken within the capital.
Liberal Democrat London Assembly Member Hina Bokhari OBE asked Mayor Sadiq Khan whether TfL would identify companies operating entirely to London’s licensing standards, even where those businesses also hold operator licences issued by authorities elsewhere in England.
The proposal was intended to help passengers establish which companies use only TfL-licensed vehicles and drivers for London journeys.
In his response, the Mayor instead pointed to TfL’s existing online Licence Checker.
The service allows passengers to establish whether a private hire operator is licensed by TfL and view information including its current licensing status. However, the response did not confirm that the checker identifies operators holding licences elsewhere or shows whether a company dispatches exclusively TfL-licensed drivers and vehicles within Greater London.
The issue has become increasingly significant as private hire companies can hold multiple operator licences issued by different licensing authorities and dispatch bookings through one branded platform. The licence under which a booking is accepted can determine which authority is responsible for the operator, driver and vehicle involved.
TfL said that when a booking is accepted by a TfL-licensed private hire operator, it must be completed by a TfL-licensed driver using a TfL-licensed private hire vehicle. If the booking is subcontracted to an operator licensed by another authority, the driver and vehicle receiving the work must be licensed by that other authority.
Applicants for a London operator licence are asked whether they or individuals associated with the business have held licences issued by other authorities. They must disclose whether those licences remain active or have been revoked, suspended or refused.
TfL also inspects operating arrangements, record-keeping systems and operating centres before granting a licence. Licensed operators are subsequently required to maintain booking, vehicle and driver records, report relevant changes and comply with ongoing inspections and enforcement activity.
Despite collecting information during the application process, TfL did not state whether it maintains or publishes a current consolidated record of every additional operator licence held by companies operating in London.
The Mayor noted that England has a national database covering taxi and private hire driver licence refusals, revocations and suspensions, but no equivalent system exists for private hire operator licences or operator licensing decisions.
The House of Commons Transport Committee has recommended establishing a national database of licensed operators. The Mayor and TfL support that proposal, arguing that stronger information-sharing between licensing authorities would improve regulatory oversight across England.
The response leaves passengers able to verify whether a business holds a TfL operator licence, but without a published means of determining whether every journey offered by that company in London is carried out exclusively under TfL licensing.
