ROG:
Wannabeheretolearn:
Does the new rules mean that you will not be able to tow anything even a 750 kg trailer if you are driving a 3500kg van with only cat b, that’s how it readsThat release by the DVLA is a rough outline of the PROPOSED changes coming into force in Jan 2013
The changes are not proposed any more - the regulations have now been made by the responsible minister, as required by the EU directive. My earlier post, which Wannabeheretolearn’s question was based on, was written based on the regulations.
Any press releases or web pages written by DVLA are not a definitive statement of law. The law is found in the regulations, subject to any interpretation or clarification made by the courts.
As I wrote earlier:
djw:
The definitions of category B and BE in respect of towing will change on 19 January 2013 when the UK implements the Third Driving Licence Directive via the The Motor Vehicles (Driving Licences) (Amendment) Regulations 2012 (SI 2012/977). The new rules are really difficult to read, because they amend the existing regulations rather than replace them with a new consolidated set. In this case, it’s the Schedule 3 amendments to the Motor Vehicles (Driving Licences) Regulations 1999 (SI 1999/2864) as amended that we are interested in, especially the amendments to Schedule 2.From the implementation of the new regulations:
A combination is category B if:* the trailer MAM is 750kg or less, or
- the vehicle MAM and trailer MAM added together do not exceed 3500kg
Category BE will only allow towing trailers up to and including 3500kg MAM, though BE entitlement gained on or before 18 January 2013 will remain free of a trailer MAM limit.
A category B vehicle plus a trailer of more than 3500kg MAM will require C1E (or CE) entitlement.
A new category, B96, will allow towing a trailer over 750kg MAM with combination MAM between 3500 and 4250kg. The UK will not grant B96 entitlement, but will include it on the UK licences issued in exchange for an EU licence with B96 entitlement
In summary the new towing rules after 19 January 2013 are:* Category B
- category B vehicle plus trailer of 750kg MAM or less - can be towed on a category B licence as at present
- category B vehicle, vehicle MAM plus trailer MAM no more than 3500kg - can be towed on a category B licence, current requirement that vehicle unladen weight must exceed trailer MAM is deleted
[/*:m] - Category BE* category B vehicle plus trailer MAM no more than 3500kg - unless it meets the category B rules this requires category BE as at present
- category B vehicle plus trailer MAM over 3500kg - will require category C1E licence unless category BE entitlement was gained on or before 18 January 2013
[/*:m] - Category B96* a subcategory of BE, limited to vehicle MAM plus trailer MAM no more than 4250kg
- the UK will not be granting B96 entitlement, but will recognise it on licences issued by other EU countries and enter it on UK licences issued in exchange for licences from other EU countries with B96 entitlement
[/*:m][/list:u] - The existing rules continue to apply until 19 January 2013.*
The UK consultation on implementing the Directive laid out the three options allowed in the Directive for B96 - test, practical course lasting seven hours, or the course and test together. The option of course and test was dismissed, and it was made clear that if the UK offered a B96 test, it would be the BE test with a B96 combination which few would want. If you’re taking a towing test, you might as well take it with a large enough combination to get the full BE entitlement.
Eventually it was decided that it wasn’t economically viable to set up a B96 training infrastructure. The belief is that if people are going to invest time and money in adding trailer entitlement to their licence, most would opt to train for and take the BE test as at present. Accordingly, the UK will not be issuing B96 entitlement.
ROG:
From conversations with the DVLA it seems that the only major change from the current B category rules is that of towing a trailer over 3500 kgs where new drivers will need a C1+E
There’s two significant changes, as can be seen from my list above.
One change is as you say - newly gained category BE entitlement will be limited to trailers of 3500kg MAM; a category B vehicle with a trailer of over 3500kg MAM will need a C1E licence. This new rule does not apply to those who gained BE entitlement before the new regulations come into force.
There are not likely to be many examples of a category B vehicle towing a trailer of over 3500kg MAM. I’d guess that most drivers encountering these heavy trailers will already have a CE licence (which includes C1E, also, in the UK, passing a CE test automatically upgrades the driver’s B entitlement to BE).
The second change is as I said:
djw:
The new category B rules are less restrictive than at present, as the requirement for vehicle unladen weight to exceed trailer MAM when towing a trailer of more than 750kg MAM disappears. Nevertheless, it is still recommended that the actual mass of the trailer is no more than the actual mass of the vehicle.
You have a better idea than I do, ROG, how much difference this change will make to those trying to tow horses on a category B licence.
If I remember correctly, the recommendation for caravans is that the caravan’s actual mass is no more than 85% of the vehicle’s mass. However, this recommendation is relaxed for horseboxes: the recommendation there is that the horsebox’s actual mass is no more than 100% of the vehicle’s mass. Please correct me if I’m wrong.
Under the current category B towing rules, the requirement to keep the trailer MAM below the unladen weight of the vehicle could lead to plating a trailer at an even lower MAM than is required to get the vehicle and trailer combination below the 3500kg combination MAM limit.
I doubt that many light vehicles have sufficient towing capacity to cope with a heavily laden horsebox, but the change in the rules will avoid some potentially ridiculous situations.
Assume there is an Ifor Williams HB403 single horsebox trailer in the yard that has been downplated from 1600kg MAM to 1400kg MAM for category B towing behind a small 4x4 and is 767kg unladen. The horsebox owner’s husband has a 2007 Vauxhall Corsa 1.7CDTi with a tow bar - 1182kg kerb weight and 1000kg towing capacity. He needs to take the horsebox to the garage for a service.
I haven’t got an MAM figure for the Corsa, but it’s going to be less than 2100kg, so the combination MAM is less than 3500kg. 767kg of horsebox is comfortably inside the Corsa’s towing capacity. However, because the 1400kg MAM of the horsebox exceeds the 1182kg kerb weight of the Corsa, the combination requires a BE licence at present; it would only be B if the horsebox was downplated to a ridiculously low figure that would prevent it being used for a horse (and Ifor Williams would probably not allow).
When the new changes come in, the Corsa and unladen horsebox combination can be driven on a B licence.
