All taxi drivers now eligible for enhanced CRB check

The changes will help to simplify the system of criminal record checks, and provide reassurance to women and other vulnerable passengers who use taxis and mini-cabs.

Lynne Featherstone, Minister for Equalities and Criminal Information, said: “Taxi drivers provide a vital service so it is only right that the public are confident proper checks have been carried out.

“Good recruitment practices are a key responsibility for all employers. These changes will ensure that licensing authorities have access to relevant information to make informed decisions before granting taxi licences.”

Until the change came into force on 26 March, only taxi and private hire vehicle drivers who regularly picked up vulnerable adults or children were eligible for enhanced checks and the change has standardised this practice for all drivers.

Tighter checks on taxi drivers are part of what the government has referred to as its “radical overhaul of the criminal records regime and vetting and barring scheme, scaling it back to common sense levels, while still ensuring adequate protections are in place where they are needed most.”