SERU, Topographical and Taxi Knowledge Test Practice

UK Driver Licence Prep is a practice site for the tests you take to become a taxi or private hire driver in the UK. If you are applying for a London PCO licence and have the SERU or the Topographical assessment coming up, or your council has booked you onto its knowledge test, you can practise here in the same format as the real test, for free, and learn why each answer is right.

We are an independent study aid. We are not Transport for London, a council or a training school, and we do not issue licences or badges. What we do is help you prepare: mock tests in each test's format, question banks written from the official handbooks, the Highway Code, the law and council policies, and plain-English study notes with sources and check dates.

The 18 taxi and private hire tests we cover

Each test has its own practice route with mocks in that test's format. The table shows the format our mocks use and the size of each question bank.

Test	Who it is for	Our mock format	Question bank	Start here
TfL SERU (private hire)	New and renewing London PCO drivers	36 questions, 50 minutes, 22 to pass	3,701	SERU mock test
TfL taxi SERU	London black cab drivers	36 questions, 60 minutes, 22 to pass	844	Taxi SERU
TfL Topographical	New London PCO drivers	30 multiple choice, 90 minutes, 18 to pass	623	Topographical practice
Birmingham	Private hire suitability test	18 questions, 30 minutes	2,275	Birmingham test
Bristol	Hackney and private hire	100 questions, 90 minutes	2,270	Bristol test
Cambridge	Hackney, private hire and dual	100 questions, 80% in every section	2,219	Cambridge test
Kirklees	Theory test after training	40 questions, 60 minutes	2,314	Kirklees theory test
Liverpool	Street Knowledge Test	110 questions, 81 to pass	2,259	Liverpool test
Milton Keynes	Driver assessment	59 questions, 60 minutes	2,272	Milton Keynes assessment
North Yorkshire	Combined licence	60 questions, 60 minutes, 48 to pass	2,232	North Yorkshire test
Nottingham	Topography test	40 questions, 45 minutes	2,264	Nottingham test
Oxford	Knowledge and safeguarding	55 questions, 80% in every section	2,258	Oxford test
Reigate & Banstead	Private hire test	20 questions, 45 minutes, 18 to pass	2,241	Reigate & Banstead test
Sevenoaks	Hackney and private hire	58 questions, 90 minutes, 80% per category	2,284	Sevenoaks test
Sheffield	Dual licence	40 questions, 60 minutes, 80% per section	2,261	Sheffield test
Stroud	Dual licence	85 questions, 90 minutes, 67 to pass	2,217	Stroud test
Wolverhampton	Private hire test	28 questions, 45 minutes, 21 to pass	2,256	Wolverhampton test
York	Knowledge and safeguarding	30 questions, 45 minutes	2,290	York test

Where a format is published officially, our mocks follow it. Where it is not, such as the PHV SERU question count or the Nottingham pass mark, we use the format most commonly reported and say so on the test's page. Council banks share a core of Highway Code, law, safeguarding and equality questions, plus questions written for that council's own policy and area. That is about 10,000 original questions in total.

London: the TfL SERU

The Safety, Equality and Regulatory Understanding (SERU) assessment is a computer-based test at TfL's assessment centre in North Greenwich. It is based on the PHV Driver's Handbook and covers licensing rules, journeys, safety, driving in London, equality and disability, and safeguarding. It mixes multiple choice, sentence completion and short reading questions, and it doubles as the reading and writing part of TfL's English requirement. It costs £40, or £30 for a re-sit, from 9 March 2026, according to TfL's SERU page.

Since 1 October 2025 London taxi drivers sit their own taxi SERU, based on the Taxi Driver Handbook. Passing the private hire SERU does not count for it. Our SERU test hub explains both, and the most useful guides are:

• SERU mock test, with the format, the pass mark and free mocks
• SERU questions and answers, grouped by handbook section
• Taxi SERU for black cab drivers and Knowledge of London students

London: the Topographical skills assessment

New London private hire drivers also pass the Topographical skills assessment. You plan three routes on a digital map, worth 66 of the 100 marks, and answer multiple-choice questions on map symbols, places, streets, road numbers and compass directions, worth 34 marks. The pass mark is 60%, and TfL's published pass rate is only 51%. See the Topographical test hub and Topographical test practice.

London: the PCO licence as a whole

The SERU and the Topographical are two steps in a longer application: a DBS check, a Group 2 medical, a speaking and listening English test, and TfL's application and grant fees. Our PCO licence guide sets out every step in order, with the current fees.

Outside London: council taxi knowledge tests

Outside London, councils license taxi and private hire drivers under the Town Police Clauses Act 1847 and the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976, and most set their own knowledge test. Formats vary widely: Birmingham's private hire test has 18 questions, while Liverpool's Street Knowledge Test has 110. Some councils need 80% in every section, so a strong local-knowledge score cannot rescue a weak law section. Our council taxi knowledge test hub compares all 15 councils we cover.

How the practice works

Every test on the site follows the same pattern, so once you know one, you know them all.

1. A free diagnostic

A short timed test of 20 questions (10 for the Topographical, 18 for Birmingham) drawn from every section. Your result shows your score by section, so you know where to spend your study time before you open a handbook. Try the SERU diagnostic or the Topographical diagnostic.

2. Quick practice

Twenty mixed questions from across the syllabus, each with its answer and explanation. That is the same daily allowance as the free tier of the app, and it fits into a break between jobs.

3. Full mock tests

Mock tests match each test's length, timer and pass mark. They are the same ten papers as in the app, so your scores on the web and on your phone compare. Mock 1 is free for every test. For council tests with a minimum per section, the result shows which section held you back.

4. Practice by section

Drill one section until you get it right every time, for example SERU safeguarding or the Highway Code for Sheffield. Section practice is part of Pro.

5. Study notes

Plain-English notes for every section, each with its sources and the date we last checked them. The exam guides are free, such as the SERU exam guide, the Topographical exam guide and the council knowledge test guide.

Key fact: Every question in our bank was written for this site and the app. We do not copy questions from TfL's handbooks, council papers or other practice sites. That means the practice tests understanding, which is what the real test rewards when it words things differently.

Why explanations and sources matter

Most free practice sites give you a question, a few options and a green or red mark. That tells you whether you were right, but not why. On a licensing test, that is not enough.

The real test words things differently

TfL selects SERU questions at random from a database it keeps reviewing, and councils change their papers too. If you memorise that answer "B" goes with a particular question, a reworded version on the day will catch you. If you understand the rule, you will recognise it however it is phrased.

Every option is explained

Our explanations cover why the right answer is right and why each wrong option is wrong. The wrong options are usually the common misunderstandings, such as thinking a private hire driver may pick up a street hail if the passenger agrees a fare, or that a driver can charge extra for carrying an assistance dog.

Every answer has a source

Each explanation names where the rule comes from: a section of the PHV Driver's Handbook, a Highway Code rule, a section of the Equality Act 2010, or a condition in your council's licensing policy. You can check anything you doubt on GOV.UK's Highway Code or legislation.gov.uk, you learn where the rules live, and when a rule changes, such as TfL's 2026 fees, we can see exactly which questions need updating.

Exam tip: When you get a question wrong, read the explanation before moving on, then find one more question on the same rule. Two in a row right means you have learned it.

Who UK Driver Licence Prep is for

• New London private hire drivers applying for a PCO licence to drive for Uber, Bolt, FREE NOW, Addison Lee or a local operator, who need the SERU and the Topographical.
• Existing PCO drivers who have to sit the SERU at renewal.
• London taxi drivers and Knowledge of London students who now need the taxi SERU.
• Drivers licensed by councils, from Birmingham and Bristol to Stroud and York, who need to pass a local knowledge test before their badge is issued.
• Drivers who think in another language. The tests are in English. The app explains every answer in nine other languages, so you can understand a rule first and then practise it in English.

How to choose the right test

If you are not sure which test you need, start from where you want to work.

You want to...	You need	Start with
Drive a private hire car in London (Uber, Bolt, minicab)	TfL PHV licence: SERU, Topographical, English	PCO licence guide
Renew a London PCO licence	SERU, if you have not passed it already	SERU mock test
Drive a black cab in London	Knowledge of London plus the taxi SERU	Taxi SERU
Drive a taxi or private hire car outside London	Your council's knowledge test and checks	Council taxi knowledge tests

Licensing is local. A London PCO licence lets you take bookings through a London-licensed operator, and a council badge covers that council's area. Check with your operator and your licensing authority before you apply, and use the official source: TfL's private hire driver licence page or your council's taxi licensing page, linked from each of our council guides.

Free practice and Pro

Everything you need to find out whether you are ready is free: the diagnostic, a full mock and quick practice for all 18 tests, the exam guides and a printable page of questions for each test.

If you want more full papers, Pro adds mocks 2 to 10, practice by section and every study note for all 18 tests. Plans are £6.99 per week, £11.99 per month or £22.99 for three months, paid securely through Stripe, and you can cancel anytime. There is no pass guarantee; we would rather tell you honestly that practice helps you prepare and the result is yours.

A study plan that works for any of these tests

The details differ by test, but the method is the same.

1. Take the diagnostic first. It takes about 20 minutes and shows your weakest sections.
2. Read the guide for your test. Know the format, the pass mark and any per-section minimum before you study.
3. Study your weakest sections first. Use the official handbook or your council's policy, our notes, then practise each section.
4. Do a little every day. Twenty questions a day for two weeks beats one long cram session.
5. Sit a full mock under the timer. In one go, without notes, as close to real conditions as you can.
6. Review every wrong answer. Read the explanation and the source.
7. Book when you score 85% or more on three mocks. A margin above the pass mark covers nerves and unfamiliar wording.

Your next step

Pick your test and take the free diagnostic now:

• London: PHV SERU, taxi SERU or Topographical
• Councils: Birmingham, Bristol, Liverpool, Sheffield, Wolverhampton or any other council from the practice page

Then, when you are ready, sit the free full mock: SERU mock 1, Topographical mock 1 or the mock for your council from its practice page.