Vehicle Specifications - Private Hire (Special Event) Vehicle

These conditions of licence are made by virtue of Section 5(2) of the Plymouth City Council Act 1975. These conditions of licence apply to all Private Hire (Special Event) vehicles licensed on or after the effective date of 01 May 2022 and supersede all previous conditions of licence.

Vehicle Specifications Private Hire (Special Event) Vehicles

General vehicle suitability

This document sets out to provide vehicle proprietors with the minimum standards a vehicle must satisfy in order to be licensed as a Private Hire (Special Event) Vehicle (SEV) by Plymouth City Council. In general all vehicles must seat no more than 8 passengers, must have M1 classification from the Vehicle Certification Agency, be of fixed head design (i.e. no convertible vehicles) and fully comply with all aspects of the Vehicle Testing Compliance Manual.

The Council wishes to maintain a clear separation between hackney carriage and private hire vehicles, therefore, certain vehicles are prohibited from being licensed as a Private Hire Vehicle, if they resemble a Hackney Carriage or are currently licensed as such. Any prospective vehicle purchaser is strongly urged to seek advice from the Licensing Section, before purchasing any vehicle which they intend to licence.

All vehicles must have European Whole Vehicle Type Approval (EWVTA), Low Volume Type Approval or Individual Vehicle Type Approval from the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA).

A vehicle intending to be licensed as Private Hire (SEV), must be presented to a Council appointed vehicle testing station and pass the vehicle compliance test, before any licence can be granted. Further information on the Vehicle Compliance Test can be found in the Vehicle Compliance Test Procedures document, and the Vehicle Testing Compliance Manual.

Vehicles that have been categorised by insurance companies as a Category A, B or S insurance write offs will not be accepted as suitable for a licence. The vehicle shall have no significant signs of damage, or corrosion and paintwork must be of a ‘professional’ finish and of one colour scheme for the whole vehicle. The passenger compartment and upholstery must be clean and free from damage that may affect its suitability for the carriage of passengers.

Categories of special event vehicle

The following categories of vehicle are what the Council consider to be private hire special event vehicles:

Stretched limousines
Decommissioned emergency services vehicles
Vintage vehicles
Other similar classifications

Stretched limousines

Stretched limousines are vehicles that have undergone an increase in length by extending the wheelbase after the vehicle was manufactured. Where a stretched limousine has been constructed or adapted to seat up to 8 passengers, the following original documentation must be provided to the Council before a vehicle licence can be granted:

Individual or Single Vehicle Approval certificate

Documentary evidence that the vehicle stretch has been performed by the manufacturer or by a coachbuilder approved by the manufacturer i.e. Imported American limousines must have been built by an approved coachbuilder under the Lincoln (Ford) vehicles Qualified Vehicle Modifier (QVM) programme or the Cadillac Master Coachbuilders (CMC) programme for Cadillac vehicles.
DVSA vehicle registration document (V5)
Valid MOT certificate.

Decommissioned emergency service vehicles

Vehicles falling into this category consist of decommissioned Fire Engines and Ambulances. Each vehicle falling into this category must fully satisfy the Council as to its suitability for licensing purposes. Therefore, each vehicle proprietor must provide the Council with full information relating to the specification of each vehicle to enable an application for licensing to be considered. Each application will be considered on its own merits and may require the proprietor to perform modifications to the vehicle in the interests of public safety and or passenger comfort.

Vintage vehicles

Vehicles qualifying under this category of vehicle must not have been constructed after 1 January 1973. This is in accordance with the DVLA taxation class for Historic Vehicles. Each vehicle falling into this category must fully satisfy the Council as to its suitability for licensing purposes. Therefore each vehicle proprietor must provide the Council with full information relating to the specification of each vehicle to enable an application for licensing to be considered. Each application will be considered on its own merits and may require the proprietor to perform modifications to the vehicle in the interests of public safety and or passenger comfort.

Licensing legislative framework

Plymouth City Council is the regulatory Licensing Authority for vehicles operating as either Hackney Carriage or Private Hire vehicles within the city. The Council obtains its powers for licensing purposes from the Plymouth City Council Acts of 1975 and 1987, and the Town Police Clauses Act 1847. This legislation enables the Council to determine the characteristics and specifications that vehicles must satisfy in order to be granted a licence. In order to assist vehicle proprietors the Council has produced separate vehicle specifications for each vehicle licence category. These specifications provide the general requirements that vehicles must satisfy, for them to be considered for licensing purposes by the Council.