Safeguarding Questions for Taxi Drivers

Safeguarding questions for taxi drivers appear in every TfL and council test we cover, and in many of them a single safeguarding mistake costs far more than one mark. They are not trick questions. They test two things: can you recognise when a passenger may be at risk, and do you know the right thing to do next. This page explains why councils test safeguarding so closely, the warning signs you need to know, who to report to, the professional boundaries that keep you and passengers safe, and how each test examines it, with worked scenarios written by us.

UK Driver Licence Prep is an independent study aid, not linked to TfL or any council. The facts below come from the DfT's statutory taxi and private hire vehicle standards, TfL's safeguarding page, Home Office guidance and council policies, checked in October 2026. Your own council's policy and training course are what you will be tested on, so read them as well.

Why taxi drivers are tested on safeguarding

The DfT's statutory taxi and private hire vehicle standards explain the background. Independent reports into child sexual exploitation, including the Casey report on Rotherham, found cases where taxi and private hire drivers were directly linked to children who were abused. The standards say the overriding aim of licensing is to protect the public, especially children and vulnerable adults.

The same standards also stress the positive side. Drivers see things other people don't: who travels where, with whom, and at what time. A driver who knows the signs and reports them can help protect someone. That is why the standards say every council should require drivers to take safeguarding training.

Key fact: Safeguarding is not only about avoiding harm yourself. Tests expect you to act as the "eyes and ears" of the community and report concerns.

How each test examines safeguarding

Test	How safeguarding is tested
TfL PHV and taxi SERU	Section 9 (PHV) and the matching taxi handbook section; TfL expects its free Safeguarding Awareness course first
Wolverhampton	3 of the 8 key questions in the 28-question private hire test
Oxford	A 5-question safeguarding and equality section needing 80%, so one mistake is the limit
Sheffield	A 5-question safeguarding section needing 4 right
Kirklees	A safeguarding module in the theory test needing 80%, with some must-answer questions
York	A full Knowledge and Safeguarding training day ending in the written test
Other councils	Safeguarding questions within the law or general sections, plus a required course

Practise the questions in SERU safeguarding, Wolverhampton safeguarding, Oxford safeguarding and Sheffield safeguarding.

Who you are protecting

• A child is anyone under 18. All children are vulnerable because of their age.
• An adult at risk is someone over 18 who needs care and support and may not be able to protect themselves, because of age, disability, illness or circumstances. Sheffield's guidance makes the point that this can include an adult who is very drunk or unwell.
• In England, the main law for safeguarding adults is the Care Act 2014. York's training covers this.

The warning signs

One sign alone rarely proves anything. Tests and training ask you to notice combinations of signs and to report them, not to investigate.

Child sexual exploitation

• A child or young person taken to hotels, parties, flats or houses at unusual times.
• Travelling to meet someone they only know online.
• With older adults who seem to control them, or who are not family.
• Frightened, withdrawn, or under the influence of drink or drugs.
• Unexplained gifts, new phones, money or clothes.
• Picked up from schools, children's homes or care settings by adults who are not carers.

County lines

The standards describe county lines as gangs moving drugs, mainly crack cocaine and heroin, between areas using dedicated phone lines, and exploiting children and vulnerable adults to carry drugs and cash. They name hire vehicles as one way victims are moved. Signs the standards list:

• Children and young people travelling in taxis or private hire vehicles alone.
• Travelling at unusual hours: during school time, early morning or late at night.
• Travelling long distances.
• Unfamiliar with the area or without a local accent.
• Paying in cash or prepaid.

The Home Office publishes county lines guidance and posters for taxi and private hire staff.

Cuckooing and coercive control

• Cuckooing: criminals take over a vulnerable person's home to deal or store drugs. You might notice frequent short trips by different young people to the same address.
• Coercive control: a pattern of controlling behaviour, such as one passenger answering for another, holding their phone, money or documents, or stopping them speaking to you. Wolverhampton's course covers both terms.

Trafficking and modern slavery

Oxford's guidance describes trafficking in three parts: movement (people being moved), control (someone else controlling them, their documents or their money) and purpose (exploitation for sex, labour or crime). Signs include groups of workers collected early and returned late by the same person, passengers who don't know their own address, and one person paying for and speaking for everyone.

Exam tip: If an answer option asks you to question the passenger, follow someone or confront a suspect, it is wrong. The right answer is to keep everyone safe, note the facts and report.

What to do when you have a concern

1. Is anyone in immediate danger? Call 999. Stop safely first.
2. Not immediate? Report to the police on 101, or anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. The DfT standards name Crimestoppers and the council's safeguarding lead as routes for concerns.
3. Tell your operator if you drive private hire, and your council's licensing or safeguarding contact as its policy requires. Some councils give a deadline: Wolverhampton's conditions say as soon as possible and within 24 hours at most.
4. Use the local process. Some councils route concerns through a Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH). Milton Keynes, for example, tells drivers to report to Crimestoppers or the MASH, and warns that failing to report can cost your licence.
5. Record the facts as soon as it is safe: date, time, pick-up and drop-off points, descriptions of people and vehicles, what was said, and the booking reference.
6. Never confront anyone or put yourself or the passenger at risk.

Reporting a concern that turns out to be innocent is not a mistake. Not reporting one that was real can be.

Professional boundaries

Safeguarding also covers your own behaviour. Tests often include questions on these rules:

• Contact details: never use a passenger's booking details to contact them for anything other than the journey. Wolverhampton's conditions forbid drivers from asking for or keeping passengers' contact details.
• Seating: where possible, a lone passenger sits in the back. Kirklees says a vulnerable passenger must not sit in the front. York bans children under 10 from the front of a private hire vehicle, except on risk-assessed contract work.
• Conversation: keep it professional. No comments about appearance, no personal questions, no sexual remarks or jokes.
• Journeys: take the agreed or most direct route, and don't make unplanned stops with a passenger on board.
• Carers: on contract work with children or vulnerable adults, show your badge and follow the contract's handover rules. Kirklees asks drivers to show photo ID to carers.
• Self-reporting: report any arrest or charge to your licensing authority. The DfT standards suggest within 48 hours, and failing to report can count against your honesty.

The TfL Safeguarding Awareness course

In London, TfL's Safeguarding Awareness course is free and online, and TfL says all licensees and applicants should take it, ideally before the SERU. It runs on a phone, tablet or computer and can be repeated as often as you want. No certificate is issued and you don't need to tell TfL you have done it. It was updated to reflect the government's Working Together to Safeguard Children guidance.

The PHV SERU then tests the same ground in its safeguarding section. Read the SERU safeguarding note, and see SERU questions and answers for how SERU questions are worded.

Council courses differ: Birmingham's is booked through the Disability Resource Centre, Nottingham uses Blue Lamp Trust e-learning, Reigate & Banstead lists several approved online providers, and Stroud requires refreshers every three years. Your council's page in our council taxi knowledge test guide gives the details.

Safeguarding law behind the questions

A few laws come up in safeguarding questions, usually as "which law" or "what happens if" items:

Law or scheme	What it means for drivers
Enhanced DBS check with barred lists	The DfT standards say councils should not license anyone on either barred list, and should check drivers every six months through the DBS Update Service
Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006	Drivers working under arrangements to transport children, such as some school contracts, may be in "regulated activity", where it is an offence to knowingly use a barred person
Taxis and Private Hire Vehicles (Safeguarding and Road Safety) Act 2022	Councils in England must record refusals, suspensions and revocations on a national register (NR3S), check it, and pass serious concerns about a driver to the council that licensed them
Care Act 2014	The main law for safeguarding adults in England

The practical point for you: a safeguarding concern about a driver follows them between councils. Honesty on your application, and prompt self-reporting, matter as much as knowing the signs.

Common mistakes in safeguarding questions

• Choosing to investigate. Asking the passenger personal questions or following someone feels helpful but is never the answer.
• Waiting for proof. You report concerns, not certainties.
• Picking only the operator. Telling your operator is right, but where someone is in immediate danger the first call is 999.
• Forgetting adults. Many questions are about vulnerable adults, not only children.
• Mixing up 999 and 101. 999 is for immediate danger; 101 is for non-emergency reports.

Worked scenarios

These scenarios are ours, written to practise the reasoning tests reward.

1. The school-time airport run. On a Tuesday at 10am you collect a girl who looks about 14 from a retail park. She is alone, has no luggage and asks to go to a city 60 miles away, paying in cash. What to do: the signs match the county lines list: alone, school hours, long distance, cash. Stay calm and polite. Complete the journey safely unless she is in immediate danger. Note the details and report to the police on 101 straight afterwards, and tell your operator. If anything suggests immediate danger, call 999.

2. The house party. Late on a Saturday, two men in their thirties book a car for themselves and three girls who look under 16 and seem drunk, to a private address. What to do: call 999. Several signs point to sexual exploitation and the risk is immediate. Do not argue with the men. Give the police the address and descriptions.

3. The regular address. Over two weeks you take different teenagers from the station to the same flat, each staying a few minutes before getting a car back. What to do: this pattern suggests cuckooing or drug running. Record the dates and times and report to 101 or Crimestoppers, and to your operator.

4. The quiet passenger. A man books for himself and a woman. He gives the address, answers when you speak to her and holds both phones. She seems scared. What to do: signs of coercive control or trafficking. Don't confront him. Note what you saw and report it. If she asks you for help or you believe she is in danger, call 999.

5. The friendly passenger. A passenger asks for your personal number so they can book you directly. What to do: decline politely and give the operator's details. This is a professional boundary, and taking direct bookings as a private hire driver is also illegal.

Your study plan

1. Today: take TfL's free Safeguarding Awareness course if you are in London, or book your council's approved course.
2. This week: read the free SERU safeguarding note or your council's safeguarding guidance, and learn the county lines warning signs list.
3. Next week: drill safeguarding topic practice for your test until you score 100% three times running, because several tests allow one mistake or none.
4. Then: move on to equality duties, which most tests pair with safeguarding. Our Equality Act for taxi drivers page covers assistance dogs and wheelchair duties.
5. Before your test: sit your test's free mock 1, such as the SERU mock, and check your safeguarding score on its own.