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After you're licensed

Where can you drive with a Wolverhampton badge?

Anywhere in England and Wales — on pre-booked work, through a Wolverhampton-licensed operator.

Council's own wording (opens in a new tab)

Three conditions, all at once

The council currently states that a private hire driver licence may be used to accept pre-booked journeys in a Wolverhampton-licensed vehicle anywhere in the country, provided they are booked by a Wolverhampton-licensed operator.

  1. Pre-booked only

    A private hire licence never allows you to ply for hire, be hailed in the street or use a taxi rank — anywhere, including Wolverhampton. Every job must be booked in advance.

  2. Wolverhampton-licensed operator

    The booking must come through an operator licensed by City of Wolverhampton Council. Many national app operators and local firms hold a Wolverhampton operator licence — check before you sign up with one.

  3. Wolverhampton-licensed vehicle

    You must drive a vehicle plated by Wolverhampton. Driver, vehicle and operator all licensed by the same council is often called the 'triple lock'.

England & Wales

Towns and cities drivers commonly work in

The licence isn't limited to a list of places — it's the operator and vehicle conditions that matter. This is an illustrative list of where Wolverhampton badge holders typically find work, not an official or exhaustive one.

  • West Midlands

    Where most Wolverhampton badge holders start.

    • Wolverhampton
    • Birmingham
    • Coventry
    • Walsall
    • Dudley
    • Sandwell (West Bromwich)
    • Solihull & Birmingham Airport
    • Telford
    • Stafford & Cannock
    • Lichfield & Tamworth

  • East Midlands

    • Nottingham
    • Derby
    • Leicester
    • Northampton
    • Lincoln

  • North West

    • Manchester & Manchester Airport
    • Liverpool
    • Preston
    • Chester
    • Warrington
    • Stoke-on-Trent

  • Yorkshire & North East

    • Leeds
    • Sheffield
    • Bradford
    • York
    • Hull
    • Newcastle
    • Sunderland

  • London & South East

    • Greater London
    • Heathrow, Gatwick, Luton & Stansted
    • Reading
    • Milton Keynes
    • Oxford
    • Brighton

  • South West & Wales

    • Bristol
    • Bath
    • Gloucester & Cheltenham
    • Cardiff
    • Newport
    • Swansea

  • East of England

    • Cambridge
    • Peterborough
    • Norwich
    • Ipswich
    • Chelmsford

Before you rely on this

  • Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate licensing regimes. A journey may end there, but you cannot work from there on a Wolverhampton licence.
  • Some operators restrict where they accept drivers or which licences they onboard — the law allowing you to work somewhere doesn't oblige an operator to give you jobs there.
  • Local councils and the Government have raised concerns about out-of-area working, and the Department for Transport has consulted on reform. The rules could change; always check the council's current FAQ.
  • A private hire licence does not permit you to drive a hackney carriage (black cab).

Planning where to work?

We can explain how the operator and vehicle conditions apply to your plans.

Council: taxi licence FAQs (opens in a new tab)