PCO car hire & rental management software
Renting to private-hire drivers means constant turnover and constant compliance. Complys keeps every driver's checks and agreement, and every vehicle's status, current and connected — across each hire, not just the first.
Part of Complys Self-Drive Hire. 30-day free trial, no card required, when the platform launches.
Renting cars to PCO and private-hire drivers is a different rhythm from ordinary car hire: longer hires, higher churn of drivers on the same vehicles, and a driver population that carries its own licensing on top of an ordinary driving licence. The compliance load is relentless, and it's exactly where a spreadsheet stops coping.
Complys runs PCO and PHV rental on the Self-Drive evidence chain, so each driver's identity, licence check and signed agreement, and each vehicle's MOT, tax, insurance and condition, stay current and connected — across every hire, not just the first one.
The hire evidence chain
From licence check to signed handover to return condition, Complys keeps the evidence of every hire connected to the vehicle, hirer and agreement. This page covers one link in that chain.
- Hirer identity & document captureIn the first release
- DVLA licence & share-code checksIn the first release
- Rental agreement & e-signatureIn the first release
- Check-out condition & photographsIn the first release
- Deposits & paymentsLaunching next
- Return / check-in conditionIn the first release
- Damage capture & photo evidenceIn the first release
- Structured damage comparison & disputesLaunching next
- Fines / PCN administration & liability transferPlanned
- Evidence pack exportIn the first release
- Tamper-evident audit trailIn the first release
Two kinds of licensing to keep straight
A private-hire driver holds an ordinary DVLA driving licence and a private-hire driver's licence from their licensing authority (TfL in London, the local council elsewhere); the vehicle itself is separately licensed as a private-hire vehicle. As the rental operator you care most about the DVLA entitlement and history — that's the check your insurer requires — while keeping the driver's private-hire documents on file.
Complys builds the DVLA share-code check into the hand-over and stores the driver's documents against the hire, so you can show, per driver and per vehicle, what was checked and when. It's an insurer and company-policy discipline, not a claim that you enforce anyone's licensing — worded accordingly.
Built for churn
The hard part of PCO rental isn't one hand-over, it's the hundredth: the same vehicle passing between drivers, each needing verification, a licence check and an agreement, while the vehicle's own MOT, tax, insurance and service keep ticking. Miss one and you've either got an uninsured driver or a non-compliant vehicle on the road.
Complys keeps one live record per vehicle and per driver, so compliance and condition stay current across a high turnover. A vehicle whose MOT, insurance or service has lapsed carries a DO NOT HIRE status and doesn't present as available — the safeguard that matters most when the fleet is always moving.
- • Driver verification, DVLA licence check and signed agreement on every hire
- • Driver private-hire documents kept on file with expiry reminders
- • Vehicle MOT, tax, insurance and service status, per vehicle
- • DO NOT HIRE on a lapsed or defective vehicle
- • Condition evidence out and back, even on long hires
Long hires and rent-to-buy
Much PCO rental runs on long hires and rent-to-buy arrangements rather than daily rentals, which changes the paperwork more than the compliance. The evidence chain still applies: verify the driver, check the licence, sign the agreement, capture condition at hand-over and on return or hand-back. Complys keeps that record for the life of the arrangement, so a vehicle handed back after months has the same defensible before-and-after as a weekend car hire.
What’s ready, honestly
Complys Self-Drive is launching. Here is exactly where the capabilities on this page stand — labelled at the feature level, never marketed as available before they ship.
Capture and store the hirer's ID and documents against the hire record. Included in Complys Self-Drive from launch.
Check entitlement, penalty points and disqualifications using the driver's DVLA check code, and store the result against the hire. Included in Complys Self-Drive from launch.
Present and e-sign the hire agreement, including a signed statement of liability. Included in Complys Self-Drive from launch.
Frequently asked questions
Does Complys handle PCO driver and vehicle licensing?
Complys keeps the driver's private-hire documents on file and builds the DVLA driving-licence check into hand-over — the check your insurer cares about. It doesn't enforce or issue anyone's private-hire licensing (that's the licensing authority's role); it keeps your evidence that you checked and recorded what you should.
How does it cope with high driver turnover?
One live record per vehicle and per driver. Every hire captures verification, a licence check and a signed agreement, while each vehicle's MOT, tax, insurance and service status stays current — with a DO NOT HIRE state on anything lapsed or defective.
Does it support long hires and rent-to-buy?
Yes. The evidence chain applies the same way to long hires and rent-to-buy: verify, check, sign, capture condition at hand-over and hand-back, and keep the record for the life of the arrangement.
Is it 'Uber-ready' car hire software?
Complys is the compliance and evidence layer for renting to private-hire drivers, whichever platform they drive for. It keeps the driver checks, agreements and vehicle status; it isn't affiliated with any ride-hailing platform.
What's available at launch?
Compliance and the full hand-over/return workflow — verification, DVLA licence checks, agreements, condition and damage capture, vehicle status and the evidence pack — is in the first release. Bookings, payments and rental-operations features are launching next.
Can I see which vehicles are safe to put on the road?
Yes. Each vehicle carries a Green/Amber/Red compliance status, and a lapsed MOT, tax, insurance or a serious defect sets a DO NOT HIRE state so the vehicle doesn't present as available.
Explore the rest of the hire evidence chain
- Self-Drive Hire software → — the full evidence-chain platform
- Driving licence check software → — the DVLA check on every hire
- Rental agreement & e-signatures → — long-hire and rent-to-buy agreements
- Vehicle condition report app → — condition out and back
See the evidence chain in action
Book a demo or register your interest, and we’ll set you up as soon as Complys Self-Drive launches.