Towing a trailor

[Danny2009]

Reading on direct gov just confuses me.

I've got a recovery truck and can carry a total of 3.5t

But I don't use it often enough and it's just another set of tax test and insurance

So I'm thinking of sellin it and buying a braked trailor and getting a tow bar fitted to car

But what's the legalities? I have the new licence

Can I have 3.5t including towing car trailor and vehicle on trailor?

Read somewhere about only being able to tow 750kg

Any help will be appreciated

[mr_fish]

If you took your Test before sometime in 1997 you can drive 7.5 ton lorries and pull a trailer.

If after, limited to 750kg behind a vehicle (thats including the trailer weight) and no 7.5 lorry allowance

Even A-Frames are getting a bit of a grey area now...apparently if your towing a vehicle over 750kg on one it must be braked...hence you see smart cars up behind campervans on a-frames now rather than bigger vehicles.

[Danny2009]

That's shit then I took my test after 1997 what am I going to pull that's under 500kg as a trailor will weigh 250kg

[powerandtorque]

If you're on a new licence then towing car trailers legally is a bit of a pain.

It's not as simple as you can tow upto x weight anymore.

It's all based on the maximum stamped weight of the tow car and of the trailer and the combination not being over a given weight. I'll see if I can find a good link explaining it, but basically, to be legal you're going to need a smallish trailer (which limits what you can put on it) and a typical medium/large saloon to tow with - most 4x4's are too heavy.

If you sit the trailer test then things are a bit easier as you don't have the restrictions.

---

Right, double checked and it's as follows

If you're towing more than 750kg, the combined gross weight / MAM (Maximum Authorised Mass) of the tow vehicle and trailer cannot exceed 3.5 tonnes and the MAM of the trailer cannot exceed the unlaiden weight of the towing vehicle.

It's the MAM's that are the pain, as most 4x4's have a very high MAM and most larger trailers have a high MAM, so keeping the combined amount below 3.5 tonnes is a nightmare.

You can tow upto 750kg (ie a smallish trailer) without issue.

[Danny2009]

Licences issued from 19 January 2013
From 19 January 2013, drivers passing a category B (car and small vehicle) test can tow:

small trailers weighing no more than 750kg

trailers weighing more than 750kg, where the combined weight of the towing vehicle and the trailer isn’t more than 3,500kg Maximum Authorised Mass (MAM)

Dosent that mean if the loaded trailor and car is under 3.5t I'm ok?


Dosent that

[powerandtorque]

Ah, sounds like they've changed the rules again on licences within the last year - what I wrote above is for 1997 onwards licences.

It's under 3.5 tonnes GROSS weight, not actual. That's the problem - the gross weight of a Disco for example is 2.7 tonnes and any half decent trailer is going to be knocking on 1.5 tonnes or more meaning that you're way over the 3.5 tonnes limit even if the actual weight of the car and trailer is less.

[Danny2009]

Just checked and my car can only pull 900kg so that's out of the question

[Piggy]

yup. its a bit lame to be honest.

[nominous]

So I'm on a pr 97 license and need to change my address.
As teh above is saying licenses issued from 2013.... I'm wondering if I'm going to get the shaft and will no longer be able to use my trailer ?!?

[powerandtorque]

Nope, it's on when you first passed your Cat B licence as to whether you have the full B+E (towing) entitlement as standard or whether you need to pass an additional test (as per post-1997 licences)

Worth keeping a photocopy of the old one though before sending it back for an address change, as I've heard of atleast two cases where entitlements have disappeared after swapping to a photo licence and DVLA denying all knowledge of the entitlements ever having been on the licence in the first place.

[nominous]

Funny you should say that. I appear to have lost it...

I've heard they wont accept photocopies as proof from a couple of internet threads on the subject of losing entitlements, inc one guy who lost his car driving entitlement and gained motorbike ?!?!

[powerandtorque]

Quite possibly they won't, atleast not without a fight, but it's far better having some evidence on your side than none!

[karl1989]

I did my trailer licence last year. Think you can tow a trailer that doesn't have a brake

[nominous]

Quite possibly they won't, atleast not without a fight, but it's far better having some evidence on your side than none!

That's one of the reasons I've left it. The other being I don't wish for a photo license.

[Dum-Dum]

Theres 3 years you need to know.


1997 and before - loads you can drive/tow
1997-2013 - can tow up to 750kg GW trailer with a 3500kg GW vehicle giving 4250kg GTW OR you can tow a trailer weighing less than the unlaiden tow vehicle and within the tow vehicles allowed towing weight and as long as trailer and tow vehicle combined are below 3500kg GTW. It should be noted that they go off the plated gross weight of the trailer and IIRC also the plated gross weight of the car if it has one. Trailers over 750kg need to be braked and if a trailer has brakes fitted they need to work.
2013-onwards - cant tow shit pretty much.


Basically you cant tow a 306 on a trailer with a 306 but you could tow one with a 406 (just) and if your towing cars its very easy to start getting over weight. Think about it. 1500kg 406 plus 2 people and tools is another 300kg then a 1250kg gti6 on a trailer weighing 300kg and thats 3350kg which I'd be starting to worry about getting dragged to a weighbridge with.








Oh and its spelled trailer not trailor

[1616six]

I was stopped with the vec towing a mk2 golf GTI on an Ifor Williams and they didn't even query it... Just tow with a reasonable size car!

[Chris_90]

Just checked and my car can only pull 900kg so that's out of the question

Sure my 106 can only two 700kg if that but I pulled a gti6 back and that probably weights a tiny bit more than the moon

[Danny2009]

I'd risk it but it's not going to be a one off thing best of just keeping truck

[powerandtorque]

I was stopped with the vec towing a mk2 golf GTI on an Ifor Williams and they didn't even query it... Just tow with a reasonable size car!

Lots of plod don't know the law very well either and often, as you've found, providing that it looks reasonable then you'll have no bother. Don't confuse that for being legal though, and certainly VOSA aren't as naive about the law if you get pulled by them...

Sure my 106 can only two 700kg if that but I pulled a gti6 back and that probably weights a tiny bit more than the moon

Towing something on a trailer is very different to towing a car on a rope or hard bar, assuming that's what you're talking about. Towing a 306 on a trailer using a 106 would be a receipe for disaster frankly.

[Piggy]

case in point when you get the weights wrong:




to be fair...the law on weights is there to protect you

[Chris_90]

After watching that....... keep the truck

[Danny2009]

f*ck

That trailor looks stupid height though

Trailor is a farse hitching up reversing ect truck is more practicle just thought a trailor would be cheaper

[nominous]

First and last time I ever used an A frame.
it's "interesting" drifting on roundabouts when it's the towed car that starts the process...

[firemoth]

I'll explain the post 1997 regs. I'm not well up on the very recent changes so I won't go into them. Your total gross weight cannot be over 3.5t unless the towing vehicle gross is 3.5t then you're allowed 750kg gross for the trailer. Also the gross weight (mam) of the trailer cannot exceed the kerb weight of the car. Keep within that and you're fine.

Danny, when you say 900kg Max, I suspect you've got this from the manual or something. This is Peugeot's recommendation. The legal limit is the gross train weight less the actual weight of your car. For example, my Peugeot 405 recommended towing weight is 1200kg. However, my gross train weight is 2850kg, my car is roughly 1000kg (roughly) so legally I can tow upto 1850kg. It's something I regularly take advantage of and go upto 1500kg (any more would be silly and start being unsafe). Bear in mind I'm an HGV class 1 driver so I don't have licence restrictions.

There are other recommendations saying the gross weight should not be over 85% of the kerb weight of the car. This is if you're not used to towing. It's a rough guide though. Size, density, load distribution are all factors. For example a 1000kg caravan will be harder to control than 1200kg of bricks

[jammapic]

Before I did my B+E I went through all of this a number of times, actually with VOSA.

Basically, as above, be sensible and make sure the trailer + load doesn't exceed the towing weight of the car and the entire train doesn't exceed 3500kg and you are fine.

I regularly tow my 950kg GTi-6 track car, on a 450kg twin axle trailer.

Just be safe and make sure you know your onions.

JP