Most public inquiries in the West Midlands Traffic Area are held in a court room at the Traffic Commissioner’s office in George Road in Edgbaston, Birmingham. Occasionally hearings might be held in other locations, but that is the exception.

As from the 1st November 2016 the Traffic Commissioner is Nick Denton.

Both goods vehicle and passenger vehicle operator licence holders are called to public inquiry to face disciplinary allegations or for consideration of applications for new licences or variations. The vast majority of new applciations are dealt with on paper, but there are problems with an application or doubts as to whether it should be granted or refused, it will be called to a public inquiry.

A public inquiry is a formal legal hearing presided over by the Traffic Commissioner. You can find more out about the public inquiry process on our page called About Public Inquiries.

The West Midlands Traffic Area

The West Midlands Traffic Area covers the counties of Herefordshire, Worcestershire, Warwickshire, Staffordshire and Shropshire. It includes the cities and towns of Birmingham, Walsall, Wolverhampton, Tamworth, Telford, Hereford, Warwick, Coventry, Rugby, Stoke on Trent, Shrewsbury, Burton on Trent, Nuneaton, Kidderminster and Cannock.

About 8,300 businesses hold goods vehicle operators licences within the West Midlands area and about 822 businesses are the holders of passenger vehicle operator licences.

Public Inquiries in Birmingham

Public Inquiries are held in Birmingham in the court room within the Traffic Commissioner’s office. Public Inquiry hearings will be heard by the Traffic Commissioner himself or a deputy Traffic Commissioner.

In the year 2014/2015 there were a total of 142 goods vehicle and 52 passenger vehicle public inquiries.

Of the goods vehicle public inquiries, 79 of them were to consider disciplinary action and 63 for considering applications. 16 of the passenger vehicle public inquiries were for application to be decided and 36 for disciplinary action.

What was the outcome of passenger vehicle public inquiries at Birmingham ?

The result of disciplinary public inquiries for passenger vehicle operator licences was as follows :

Out of 50 public inquiries for disciplinary action, 25 (50%) had their operators licence revoked. A further 3 (6%) had their licence suspended and 2 had their vehicle fleets reduced. 12 got away with only a written warning and only 6 (12%) resulted in no action being taken at all.

Result of applications heard at public inquiry :

There were 16 public inquiries dealing with new applications at Birmingham. Of these 13 (81%) were refused outright, only 3 (less than one in five) were granted in full.

Outcomes of Goods Vehicle (HGV) Public Inquiries in Leeds

Result of disciplinary public inquiries :

From 79 goods vehicle public inquiries called for disciplinary action, 37, almost half of them, ended with the operators licence being revoked. 5 licences were suspended and 13 had the number of permitted vehicles reduced. Only 12 (about 15%) resulted in no action taken.

Result of applications heard at public inquiry :

63 applications were dealt with at public inquiries in Birmingham over the course of the year. About a quarter, 15 of these, were refused. Some were part granted or granted with conditions attached. Only 12 (about on in five) were granted in full.

What to do if you've been called to a public inquiry in Brimingham

First of all, recognise that any public inquiry called for any reason is a very serious thing. Secondly recognise that getting legal advice and having an experienced transport law solicitor on your side is half the problem sorted.

A good transport law specialist will be able to get stuck into your case and do all sorts of things to get you ready to face the Traffic Commissioner and come away with a good outcome.

We strongly recommend that you speak to us urgently if you've had a call to public inquiry. Nearly all of our clients (well over 90%) have a successful outcome at their public inquiries.

We regularly handle public inquiries at Birmingham and know exactly how to prepare and present a successful case. We've been doing it for years and have helped hundreds of operators through what is always a very difficult and uncertain time.

Please call Simon Newman on 01302 775522 or email him on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. I will be very glad to talk through your situation and review your papers free of charge to enable you to make an informed decision about what to do.