Taxi and Private Hire Testing Stations
Approved Testing Stations for Taxi and Private Hire Vehicles
We are now accepting applications for garages who wish to become approved testing stations for taxis and private hire vehicles.
Application packs are available for collection from the reception desk at Scaitcliffe House, or by emailing licensing@hyndburnbc.gov.uk.
Applications should be returned to Scaitcliffe House by the deadline of 16th January 2026.
Change to the Taxi and Private Hire Policy
A change of policy was recently approved which affects how testing of hackney carriage and private hire vehicles will be carried out moving forward. Rather than using the current internal testing station, the Council are seeking to appoint up to 5 current MOT testing stations to become approved taxi testing stations.
The appointed testing stations will be expected to carry out DVSA class 4 MOT’s on taxi’s and private hire vehicles and also certify compliance with the Council’s supplementary testing manual. The supplementary testing manual sets out additional standards over and above MOT requirements which the Council requires vehicles to meet in order to be licensed as taxis in Hyndburn.
The Council currently licenses 315 private hire vehicles and 55 hackney carriages, which undergo testing as follows:
- Vehicles up to 2 years old – 1 test per year
- Vehicles between 2 and 15 years old – 2 tests per year
- Vehicles over 15 years old – 3 tests per year
If a vehicle fails any part of the MOT or compliance test it cannot be licensed as a taxi. We require a retest to be taken within 10 working days of the original test, or a full test will be required. Only one retest is permitted before a further, complete MOT and compliance test is required.
We expect to have the new system in place by March 2026.