Question - Van of around 2100kg kerb weight, 3500kg gross 6000kg max with trailer towing a trailer plated at 2700kg (looking at plating down).
What licence is required?
C1+E seems to be limited to trailer being less than kerb wweight of van.
B+E does not seem to have this restriction.
Direct Gov is a little confusing.
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Any Gov is confusing!
For what it's worth I prefer front wheel drive for towing. I have a 3500 lwb Renault Master and tow a large trailer at times. More stable than the old rwd transit than wouldn't stop with a loaded trailer.
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Not sure of current legislation, but I passed my car test in 1990 so I have grandfather rights as do all drivers who passed before 1997. These allow me to drive any vehicle up to 7500kg gross weight, and to tow a trailer provided the total weight of the combination does not exceed 8250kg. As I see it I can effectively drive a Ford Cargo roadworks tipper pulling a compressor, or a Transit towing pretty much anything up to the size of another Transit.
I had two jobs in the mid-1990s which involved towing with vans -
First one was driving an E-reg Transit flat bed (2000kg Unladen Weight, 3500kg Gross Vehicle Weight, 5500kg Gross Train Weight) towing a 4-wheel winch trailer with a 2,000kg reel of steel cable inside it. The trailer almost certainly weighed more than the van and had over-run brakes.
The second one was driving a P-reg Transit tipper (2200kg ULW, 3500kg GVW, 5500kg GTW) towing anything and everything plant hire-related from titchy compressors up to 4 wheel Ifor Williams jobs. The van was normally laden as well, and was fitted with a tachograph which only had to be brought into use on the first occasion in the day where something was towed, and then used for the remainder of that day. No towing all day, no tacho requirement for that day.
I know GVW has been replaced by MAM (Maximum Authorised Mass) but other than that I'm in the dark with you on the finer points of the regulations.
Last edited by: Dave_TD {P} on Mon 26 Apr 10 at 12:42
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This question often crops up in boating forums where someone wants to move a big but unladen trailer with a car.
The answer seems to be that there is an anomally in the rules depending on the 1997 licence watershed. Modern licence holders have to pay regard to the maximum load weight the trailer is rated to carry, regardless of whether it is actually carrying anything.
But the old licence permits towing of anything as long as
1) the combined actual weight is less than 8.25 tonnes, and
2) the manufacturer's rated trailer capacity is not exceeded, and
3) the towing vehicle's manufacturers' maximum towing weight is not exceeded.
This last may be restricted by requiring independent, rather then over-run brakes, above a certain weight.
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as said tow a trailer with a van and you need to keep within drivers hours and have a tachograph fitted its seen as business use so be very wary if you are un legit
im sure dvd will give a fuller explanation of certain rules and exemptions like pulling a showmans carriage
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Isn't the trailer/van thing an EU something or other and not law here. I cannot afford any more expense.
MD
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My concern was driving licence categories and B+E appears NOT to have a weight limit as long as the van train weight is not exceeded so a 3500kg transit with 6000kg train weight can tow a 2500kg trailer on a B+E, BUT if the van gross is 3501kg he cannot tow a 2499kg trailer on a C1+E as the trailer would exceed the unladen weight of the Van - an anomaly wher a higher license category is more limited (except you don't get 3501kg vans).
I am aware that with certain exeptions a vehicle with a train weight of over 3.5T (any trailer puts a 3.5T van into this category) requires a tachograph. Even a Discovery with a 1 tonne trailer may need a tachograph!
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Gypsies drive transits pulling large caravans im sure you will be fine.
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Towing with a Van - MD
