Outside London, you need the same private hire insurance as a London driver: hire and reward cover for carrying pre-booked passengers. What changes is who licenses you. In England, Wales and Scotland, your local council does that instead of Transport for London (TfL), and your policy has to satisfy that council.
Zego private hire insurance covers drivers licensed by any UK council, and it's accepted by Uber, Bolt and Ola. One policy covers private hire work, food delivery and your personal driving, for 30 days or a year.
Who licenses you in Great Britain
A PCO licence is London's name for a TfL private hire licence. It comes from the Public Carriage Office, TfL's old licensing office. Outside London you hold a private hire driver licence from your council instead, sometimes called a badge. Our guide to getting a private hire licence walks through the council route, and our PCO licence guide covers London.
So 'no PCO needed' is true outside London, but it's about the licence, not the insurance. You still need private hire (hire and reward) cover, which Zego's private hire page points out is a legal requirement for drivers using apps like Uber, Bolt and Ola.
Where you work | Who licenses you | The law it comes from |
|---|---|---|
London | TfL | Private Hire Vehicles (London) Act 1998 |
England outside London | Your district or unitary council | Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 |
Wales | Your county or county borough council | Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 |
Scotland | Your council, as the licensing authority | Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 |
Your licences and your policy have to line up
In England and Wales outside London, a private hire job involves three licences. You need a driver licence, the car needs a private hire vehicle licence, and the operator taking the booking needs an operator licence. Section 46 of the 1976 Act makes it an offence to knowingly work without them.
In practice all three normally come from the same council. Tell your insurer which council licenses you and the car, and update them if that changes.
Councils check the insurance too. In England and Wales, a council officer can ask the owner of a licensed private hire car to produce its certificate of insurance, under section 50 of the same Act.
Scotland goes further. A council can't grant or renew a private hire car licence unless it's satisfied the car has insurance in force, under section 10 of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982. Drivers also need a private hire car driver's licence from the council, under section 13.
Working across council boundaries
Your driver, vehicle and operator licences normally come from the same council, but an operator can pass work on. Under section 55A of the 1976 Act, an operator in England or Wales can pass a booking to an operator licensed by another council, to a London operator or to one in Scotland. The operator that takes the passed-on booking provides the vehicle to carry it out.
If you move area or relicense with a different council, tell your insurer straight away.
The rules are due to change. The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act 2026 makes this part of the 1976 Act subject to new national standards for licences. That change isn't in force yet, so for now your council's own licensing rules apply.
Costs outside London vary more than you'd think
Many guides say private hire is cheaper outside London. Zego's study of taxi driver start-up costs, published in August 2025, found London the most expensive city at around £1,856. Wakefield, at around £1,828, and Bradford, at around £1,714, were close behind.
Council fees alone vary a lot. The same study found a three-year taxi licensing fee of £642 in Wakefield, against £261.55 in London. Check your own council's fees before you apply, and get an insurance quote with your own details.
What Zego covers wherever your council is
Zego's private hire insurance covers Uber, Bolt and all UK councils, so a council licence from Cornwall to the Highlands qualifies. Your certificate uploads to Uber, Bolt and Freenow straight from the Zego app, so you're not emailing documents to three platforms.
Choose 30 days or a year, on Third Party Only or Fully Comprehensive, with public liability cover up to £10m. If you pick up food delivery work between fares, that's on the same policy.
You can pick Standard cover, which needs no telematics app, or Zego telematics, which looks at how smoothly you drive and builds a renewal price that reflects it. Optional extras include breakdown cover, a replacement car licensed for private hire while yours is repaired, and no claims discount protection.