How to tell if you need a towing licence

[john p]

My old Foden has not got any synchro`s so its double the clutch up and down the box , let a newby take that on a test

 

Bob

 

 

That's gonna be a lost art soon Bob.

[Justme]

Or is that just something they added since we passed and decided not to tell us?

 

 

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Bingo.

 

We did have it when we took the test. It was then removed, well sort of removed. Teh cat were changed form the A we had that covered all the stuff we had to all the new ones. During that change they put the 107 on.

 

May was about when I spotted I had a full Cat A motorcycle & not the restricted tricycle one I should have had. Now the restrictions are back on.

[Justme]

I found this:

 

The 107 restriction is only found on licences where the C1 category is present by virtue of grandfather rights, ie if you had a full car licence before the new categories came into force (1997 I think) you could drive vehicles up to 7.5 tons gvw and 8.25 tons gtw. This entitlement has no age-related restrictions, so will remain present as long as you have your licence.

 

The "new" Euro category C1+E allows 12 tonnes GTW but since this is a greater gtw than you would have had with the old car licence, the restriction 107 was invented to reduce the scope of your entitlement. The new Euro C1+E has the same age restrictions as the cat C, ie it needs to be renewed every 5 years from age 45, but this only requires a medical, not a driving test.

 

So the current situation is that if you have C1+E through grandfather rights you have the code 107 restriction and an enduring licence (ie it doesn't need renewing at 45). To remove the restriction you would need to take a current C1+E test which would give you the full 12 tonnes gtw entitlement (ie remove the 107) but this will need renewing every 5 years from age 45.

 

If you have the C1+E (107) by grandfather rights and take the C1+E test to get the 107 restriction removed, and then don't renew the licence when the medical falls due, you will revert to entitlement you held through grandfather rights, ie C1+E (107).

 

If you have taken the C1+E test since the new category was introduced, you will be 12 tonnes rated anyway. This also will of course need renewing every 5 years from 45.

 

One slightly odd outcome from all this come is you had a full car licence and a full HGV 1 entitlement prior to the introduction of the new licence categories, like I did. Despite having full car and full HGV1 pre-97, my licence now has B+E, C1+E (107), and C+E. It took me a while to work out why the 107 hadn't cleared since the C+E obviously allows me to drive unlimited gross trains weights on the road (subject to Special Types regs etc). The reason is due to the different expiry dates; the C+E now has to be renewed every 5 years (since I am over 45) whilst the B+E and C1+E (107) do not. So if I chose not to renew the C+E entitlement, the 107 restriction would again become effective.

 

I hope that you can make sense of this, it is actually less complicated than it sounds when you write it down. It does however require a little thought to figure it all out!

 

Thats all correct apart from its missing that the Cat A test we took did have the full 12000kg & that when the change came in you could claim the 12000kg to keep it if you could prove you were using it.

[Justme]

People with a paper licence had 12000kg on it with no restrictions.

 

Sadly the people now in the office dont know what was legal in the 80's.

 

They think ALL the licence changes happened in 97.

[monkeybusiness]

People with a paper licence had 12000kg on it with no restrictions.

 

Sadly the people now in the office dont know what was legal in the 80's.

 

They think ALL the licence changes happened in 97.

 

Mine had the restriction on it in 94.

[Justme]

As with most stuff from the 80's & 90's you cant find details on the web about it.

[Justme]

Mine had the restriction on it in 94.

 

 

Did mine in 87. No restriction. They even sent me a letter asking if I needed to claim the full 12000kg when they did restrict it. As I was not using it I could not claim it as I did not have the proof needed.

[Mark Bolam]

Oh well, I've usually been drinking heavily before I drive so I suppose it's the least of my worries.

 

 

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[openspaceman]

Oh well, I've usually been drinking heavily before I drive so I suppose it's the least of my worries.

 

]

 

Me too, two cups of tea in the morning and I need a comfort stop by 10:00:001_smile:

 

The 8250kg restriction never worried me as I'm not a lorry driver and dislike towing but: if you need to move something heavier than 3 tonne you have a problem with the current B+E, whereas, subject to homologation, it was previously feasible to tow a payload of about 4 tonnes. This facility has now been closed for anyone now taking B then E as the restriction for towing is 3.5 tonne (which coincidentally is the limit for over run brakes).

 

It also means these heavier machines need a driver with HGV to get them to site unless you use a tractor and the work is horticultural, forestry or agriculture.

 

I wonder what the implication is for those big 5th wheel caravans.

[SWB58]

Using tractors outside their normal environment is more common than it used to be with the speeds of 50kph and above. The big no no is using gas oil to do it.

 

I've had a summer job with our local authority grass cutting with their tractor for the last few years, in that time they've had to change over to run on Derv.