Wolverhampton private hire test questions and answers: what is real and what to study

No. In April 2018 someone asked the City of Wolverhampton Council, under the Freedom of Information Act, for the complete list of questions and correct answers in the private hire knowledge test. The council refused under section 38 of the Act, which covers information that would be likely to endanger health and safety.

The council explained that the test is meant to check knowledge, and that drivers who had seen the questions in advance would study only those questions rather than the wider knowledge the test is there to check. It concluded that releasing them could put the public at risk.

So a website or PDF that claims to contain the full, real Wolverhampton paper with answers is not something the council has published. Our practice questions are original. We do not have, and do not sell, the council's real paper.

Source: Response to Request for Information FOI 002174: Private Hire Driver Applicants (opens in a new tab) (City of Wolverhampton Council, Response dated 12 April 2018, section 38 exemption and public interest test)[1]

Worcestershire County Council, which runs Wolverhampton's training and assessment course, publishes a two-page document called 'Wolverhampton City Council Private Hire Licensing Questions'. It lists question prompts only. There are no answer options and no answers. The file dates from January 2023. You can read the full list on the Worcestershire website (opens in a new tab).

The prompts cover practical licence rules, including:

• where to wear your driver's badge and what to do if you lose it
• how many passengers a licensed saloon car or minibus can carry
• who you must tell about a change of address, convictions or fixed penalties, and how quickly
• DBS checks, insurance documents and who may inspect them
• booking records, vehicle plates and maintenance records
• seat belts, child passengers and helping passengers

Source: Wolverhampton City Council Private Hire Licensing Questions (opens in a new tab) (Worcestershire County Council, Pages 1 and 2)[2]

The list is a few years old, and Wolverhampton's licensing policy and conditions have been updated since. The answers in the test come from the current rules, so learn those rather than answers copied from an old document.

One example: the 2023 list asks who you must tell 'within 7 days' if you change address. Wolverhampton's current private hire driver licence conditions say you must tell the licensing authority within 48 hours of any change to your name, address, telephone number or email address.

Sources: Wolverhampton City Council Private Hire Licensing Questions (opens in a new tab) (Worcestershire County Council, Page 1)[2]; Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Vehicle Licensing Policy (12.06.2026), including licence conditions, Guidelines on Fitness and Propriety, fees and Taxi CCTV Policy (opens in a new tab) (City of Wolverhampton Council, Private Hire Driver Licence Conditions, condition 1 (PDF page 51))[3]

These are taken from Wolverhampton's current private hire driver licence conditions. Always check the latest version on the council's website.

Check you remember these conditions with the free Wolverhampton practice test. Each answer shows the condition it comes from.

• Badge: carry the licence badge on the council's lanyard at all times while driving a private hire vehicle, and wear it around your neck with your name and photo visible while working.
• Lost badge: report the loss to the council within 48 hours and buy a replacement.
• Convictions and police matters: tell the council within 48 hours of an arrest, charge, conviction, caution, fixed penalty notice and the other matters listed in the conditions. You must do this yourself, even if someone else has already told the council.
• Health (Group 2 medical): if you have a condition you must report to DVLA, or you no longer meet the Group 2 medical standard, stop driving immediately and tell the council.
• DBS: stay registered with the DBS Update Service and let the council check your certificate. If you cannot subscribe, provide a new enhanced DBS certificate every six months.
• Smoking: no smoking of any kind, including e-cigarettes and vapes, by anyone in the vehicle at any time.

Source: Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Vehicle Licensing Policy (12.06.2026), including licence conditions, Guidelines on Fitness and Propriety, fees and Taxi CCTV Policy (opens in a new tab) (City of Wolverhampton Council, Private Hire Driver Licence Conditions, conditions 1 to 3 (PDF page 51); Private Hire Driver Licence Conditions, conditions 5, 11 and 15 (PDF pages 52 and 53); Private Hire Driver Licence Conditions, condition 19 (PDF page 53))[3]

You sit the test after about six hours of training on Worcestershire County Council's course. It has 28 multiple-choice questions, including 8 key questions: 3 on safeguarding, 2 on plying for hire, 2 on disability awareness and 1 on GDPR (data protection). You need 75% to pass. The course and test are in English only, with no translation or interpreter, and the course costs £50. The course also includes a face-to-face English assessment, followed by a recorded interview if there are concerns. The council does not publish how the key questions are marked, so treat those topics as ones you cannot afford to get wrong.

You can sit the test three times. After three fails you must wait twelve months before starting again. A test-only resit costs £20, but only as your second attempt. Read what to do if you fail, how to book the course, and, if you were licensed before 19 September 2019, the re-test for existing drivers. Our Wolverhampton test page has the full details and sources.

Sources: Taxi knowledge and practical test (opens in a new tab) (City of Wolverhampton Council, Private hire licence: training course; costs)[4]; Taxi driver training (Wolverhampton) (opens in a new tab) (Worcestershire County Council, About the course; Costs)[5]

Read the current licensing policy and the private hire driver licence conditions, then test yourself. Our free Wolverhampton practice test uses original questions written from those documents, and each answer shows the condition or law it comes from. Pay particular attention to plying for hire, safeguarding and disabled passengers, because those are key question topics, along with GDPR. Assistance dogs are also on the course: see assistance dogs in private hire vehicles.

Source: Taxi knowledge and practical test (opens in a new tab) (City of Wolverhampton Council, Private hire licence: training course)[4]