Are you towing legally?
Driving licence rules and what you can tow
As of Nov 2021 all B Licence holders will be granted BE on their licence. This will only show on your licence when you update or change your photo card licence. However you can see the change online by visiting https://www.gov.uk/view-driving-licence.
We strongly recommend people taking a towing course however as it is an entirely different driving skill and where people have expensive caravans / horse boxes I’m sure you would benefit from having had some expert tuition.
We will keep the information below just in case rules ever change again in the future but for now it is obsolete.
Please read the text below, it is taken directly from the DVSA website but is extremely poorly worded. The most important point to note is the highlighted text regarding what you can tow if you passed your test after 1997. It says you can TOW A TRAILER UP TO 3500kg ….NOT You can only have a 3500kg combination of car and trailer. So your max combination would actually be 7000kg (3500kg vehicle and 3500kg trailer)
We have raised the wording numerous times with the DVSA with absolutely no success, yet we must receive 25 calls a week from people asking us to explain their website !!!!
What you can tow
You can tow trailers up to a certain weight with your car driving licence. The weight you’re allowed to tow depends on when you got your licence.
You’ll need to know the weight of both the vehicle and trailer – also known as the ‘maximum authorised mass’ (MAM).
The MAM is listed in the owner’s manual and is normally shown on a plate or sticker fitted to the vehicle or trailer.
If you got your licence before 1 January 1997
You can usually drive a vehicle and trailer with a combined weight of up to 8,250kg MAM. View your driving licence information to check.
You’re also allowed to drive a minibus with a trailer over 750kg MAM.
If you got your licence from 1 January 1997
You can tow a trailer that weighs up to 3,500kg MAM. This is known as a ‘category BE’ vehicle.
Your driving licence information shows which categories of vehicle you’re allowed to drive. View your driving licence information.
If you do not have ‘category BE’ on your physical driving licence, DVLA will add this the next time you renew your licence.
Towing heavier combinations (If your vehicle weighs more than 3500kg)
If you want to tow heavier combinations, you’ll have to first apply for provisional entitlement to the new C1+E entitlement. You’ll then have to pass the category C theory test and C1+E practical test.
Once you’ve done this you can drive vehicles and trailers with a combined weight of up to 12 tonnes MAM.
Gross Trailer Weight
This is the max weight a trailer is permitted to carry , including its own weight. So if you have a trailer that weighs 700kg but has a Gross Max Weight of 2500kg then the latter is classed as its real weight for legal towing purposes
Gross MAM of your Vehicle & Trailer = Max Gross Vehicle Weight + Max Gross Trailer Weight
The possible Penalties for Towing Without a Valid Licence
9 Penalty Points (3 For the missing Licence entitlement and 6 for no Insurance – owing to fact you are driving without a licence)
A Maximum fine of approx £5000
Possible impounding of your vehicle and trailer
Employer fines of up to £1000 per employee prosecution
Is it worth the risk?
Even if you believe you are entitled to tow legally our advice is to get some “trailer training” if you have little or no experience before you consider towing anything. Our “introduction to towing” courses are informative and enjoyable. It will give you the chance to gain some basic skills that you can demonstrate when using your own trailer without the fear of looking stupid.
Daily Telegraph Article 2017 – “Do you know what you can tow ?”
