South West · driver medicals

Taxi driver medical in Somerset West and Taunton

Which doctor Somerset West and Taunton will accept, how often you have to repeat it and which form they want. Councils disagree with each other on every one of those, so this is Somerset West and Taunton’s answer and nobody else’s.

What Somerset West and Taunton requires

• Who licenses you now: Somerset West and Taunton Council was abolished on 1 April 2023. Somerset Council issues your licence, but it still runs Somerset West and Taunton as a separate licensing zone. There is a second layer here: within the zone, the former Taunton Deane and former West Somerset areas are still governed by two different inherited handbooks, so check which one covers you
• “If you are a licensed hackney carriage or private hire vehicle driver and need to provide a medical certificate, you must get your GP or another registered medical practitioner to examine you and complete the Taxi and private hire medical form (PDF 102KB)”
• How often: A completed medical certificate is required with a new application, and again with a renewal application where one is due. Somerset publishes no age ladder or interval for this zone - ring licensing
• Form: Somerset's Taxi and private hire medical form. Fill in every part of the application EXCEPT the 'Questions for Medical Adviser' section - that part is for the doctor

Taken from Somerset Council - Taxi or Private Hire driver licence, Somerset West and Taunton area. Completing and submitting the application form, and the Taxi and private hire driver medical section. Rules change and councils rewrite their pages without notice, so confirm before you book and pay. If something here is wrong please say and I will check it against the council and fix it.

How Somerset West and Taunton compares

Of the 315 UK licensing areas checked so far, Somerset West and Taunton is one of 31 that let any GMC-registered doctor sign it, which is the easiest and usually the cheapest position to be in.

Who may sign it elsewhere in South West

Neighbouring authorities do not follow each other on this, and a certificate accepted in one is regularly refused in the next. Check the area whose badge you actually hold.

Licensing area	Who can carry out the medical
Bristol	Any registered doctor with your records
Exeter	Only a provider the council names
Plymouth	Your own GP, or a doctor with your records
Bath and North East Somerset	The council does not say
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole	Your own GP only
Cornwall	Any registered doctor with your records
Dorset	Any registered doctor with your records
Gloucester	Any GMC-registered doctor
Swindon	Any registered doctor with your records
Torbay	Any registered doctor with your records
Tewkesbury	Any registered doctor with your records
North Somerset	Any GMC-registered doctor

What it costs to be licensed in Somerset West and Taunton

The medical is one bill among several. See what Somerset West and Taunton charges for the driver, vehicle and operator licences, taken from the same published sources.

Every line above is taken from Somerset West and Taunton’s own published guidance and read by hand against that source. Nothing here is from trade press, a forum or an estimate. This is not medical or legal advice.

← Medical rules for every UK licensing area