Please note that the borough council does not employ individual drivers, proprietors or operators; many work together on radio circuits, others work individually. If you wish to book a taxi or private hire vehicle, you should contact a licensed operator direct.

Hackney carriages and their drivers are licensed under the Town Police Clauses Act 1847 and the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976. Private hire vehicles, drivers and operators are licensed under the 1976 Act.

Types of licence

• Hackney carriages, often referred to as taxis, may be hailed, hired from a taxi rank or pre-booked. Licensed hackney carriages have a roof sign and a distinctive orange plate on the rear of the vehicle. Maximum fares for journeys within the borough are regulated by the borough council and a taximeter will be used.
• Hackney carriage drivers may drive an Eastleigh licensed hackney carriage and must wear and display their licence badges.
• Private hire vehicles may only be pre-booked and are identified by a distinctive green plate on the rear, Borough identity stickers with licence plate number on the rear doors of the vehicle, and display signs on the front doors displaying the private hire operator details. Fares are not regulated and should be agreed at the time of booking. A taximeter may be used, if one is available.
• Private hire drivers may drive an Eastleigh licensed private hire vehicle and must wear and display their licence badges.
• Private hire operator's licences are required by individuals or firms which take bookings for the hire of private hire vehicles.

More information about:

1. Hackney carriage table of fares - from 26 September 2022
2. New Hackney Carriage & Private Hire Policy and Conditions - valid from 01/01/2022

Taxi and private hire complaints

Wheelchair accessibility

Please see the list below of the borough's licensed hackney carriages and private hire vehicles which are wheelchair accessible - this includes contact details for the proprietor or operator of each vehicle, where this information has been made available.

Please note that this list is provided for information only, and that Eastleigh Borough Council cannot guarantee that individual operators, proprietors or drivers will be able or willing to provide any particular taxi or private hire service.

The Department for Transport has announced that it intends to implement Part 5 of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 to require all hackney carriages to be wheelchair accessible with effect from a date to be set. These proposals are still being developed, and have been further delayed from the 2010 target date.

Public Registers

Details of licences granted for hackney carriages, hackney carriage drivers, private hire vehicles, private hire drivers and private hire operators are available through Public Access - there is also an extract of the register of hackney carriage and private hire drivers.

Licensed Transport Forum

The objective of the Taxi and Private Hire Forum is to have a more constructive relationship between drivers, operators and the Council's Licensing Department. The forum meets 4 times a year to discuss proposed changes to the licensing regime, local events/matters that may affect the trade, and any queries/concerns that drivers and/or operators may have. 

Forum representatives might be asked to attend Council meetings/hearings on behalf of the trade. Your Trade Representatives are:

Hackney Carriage - Arron Andrews, Leigh Dodds, Steve Lucas

Private Hire - Kevin May, Roger Vivian, Rick Athwal

Minutes of all forum meetings are available to download. 

Members of the licensing team are normally available at Eastleigh House on Monday, Wednesday & Friday from 09:00 to 14:00.  The team are available Monday to Friday 09:00 to 16:00 via telephone or email. To submit any applications an appointment must be made before attending the office.