Thousands of taxi and private hire drivers licensed by City of Wolverhampton Council are facing significant fee hikes for the first time since 2011, as the authority seeks to address rising costs and mounting administrative demands.
The proposed increases—some as high as 66%—will go before the council’s regulatory committee on Wednesday, 11 June. If approved, the changes will impact approximately 50,000 drivers, the vast majority of whom are based outside Wolverhampton.
Under the new structure, a one-year licence renewal for private hire operators with up to four vehicles is set to rise from £150 to £250. Meanwhile, new hackney carriage and private hire drivers will see their annual licence fee increase from £49 to £69, and the cost of a three-year driver licence will rise from £98 to £128. Vehicle licence fees are also expected to jump, increasing from £125 to £175 annually.
The council’s licensing team has attributed the fee hike to growing operational pressures and a surge in compliance checks. A report submitted to the committee highlights the authority’s transformation over the past decade—from overseeing 1,500 drivers to managing one of the largest licensing operations in the UK with around 50,000 drivers.
While the council had been able to hold fees steady thanks to “economies of scale,” increasing workloads and the need for more rigorous vetting have made the current pricing structure unsustainable. In 2024–25 alone, Wolverhampton City Council had to dip into its reserves to the tune of £493,000 to fund the service.
“This fee increase is anticipated to prevent any overspend this year,” the report states. “Additional resource requirements to tackle the backlog of applications and higher than usual internal recharges applied in March 2025 have meant that the fees require recalculation.”
Despite the proposed rises, council officials argue that the updated fees still offer “excellent value for money,” especially when adjusted for inflation compared to the 2011 rates.
The changes would take effect immediately for new operator licences, while the revised vehicle licence fees would apply from 10 July, pending consultation feedback.
Notably, 96% of all licences issued by Wolverhampton Council are granted to drivers living outside the city, underscoring the council’s continued role as a major licensing hub for drivers across the UK.
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