Trailer towing:- B and B+E licence rules explained

[R0G]

SUPERVISING A B+E LEARNER
In April 2010 new rules were introduced for those supervising certain learner drivers but they only affected those supervising VOCATIONAL categories such as C1 C1+E D1 & D1+E where the supervising driver had those categories given to them for free when they passed a pre 1997 car test.
They do not affect those with a pre 1997 B+E licence who wish to supervise a B+E learner.

All B licence holders have B+E provisional on the paper part of their licence and can tow an empty or loaded trailer on all roads including motorways.

The usual rules apply when a learner is driving -
The supervising driver must be aged over 21
The supervising driver must have held a B+E licence for at least 3 years
L plates must be fitted to the front of the vehicle and the rear of the trailer
Correct insurance for a B+E learner
The supervising driver does not need to be insured unless they are driving

[BMW343]

Hi Rog

Thank you for that
Must book the test so and just get it done

[adamfraser]

Another one for you Rog.

Got license in 2009 not sat B+E test yet.

Vehicle - VW LT35 158 TDI LWB
GVW 3500kg
GTW 5500kg

So can essentially tow 2 tons on the back. Now from what I can see on the .gov site, it states that -

You can also tow a trailer with a MAM greater than 750kg as long as the combined weight of the category B vehicle and trailer doesn’t exceed a MAM of 3,500kg.

With the van being 2115kg minimum kerbweight, time i put the trailer and car on the back it's well over 3.5t. Take it that means i'm headed towards C1+E?

[R0G]

adamfraser said:

Another one for you Rog.

Got license in 2009 not sat B+E test yet.

Vehicle - VW LT35 158 TDI LWB
GVW 3500kg
GTW 5500kg

So can essentially tow 2 tons on the back. Now from what I can see on the .gov site, it states that -

You can also tow a trailer with a MAM greater than 750kg as long as the combined weight of the category B vehicle and trailer doesn’t exceed a MAM of 3,500kg.

With the van being 2115kg minimum kerbweight, time i put the trailer and car on the back it's well over 3.5t. Take it that means i'm headed towards C1+E?

GVW 3500 means you can tow a trailer with a max plated MAM of 750 kgs on your B licence

With B+E you can tow an actual weight of 2000 kgs as long as the trailer is plated to at least that weight

C1+E only applies if either the vehicle or trailer is plated at more than 3500 kgs

[bencollins]

Great thread.
Im planning to tow a 1430kg (1400kg dry) rear engine and rear weight bias car on Tuesday 270 miles with a new (hired) 114cdi RWD Vito which states can tow a 2500kg trailer,
Will take out the front seats, spare wheel, tool kit to get the weight to 1350ish and put them in the van strapped down against the bulkhead.
question is.................
Should i reverse it on the trailer?
And where should the C-o-G of the car be - in the centre line of the trailer or a little bit toward the tow-hook?
Each axle can take 900kg apparently.
Have B-E licence.

Edited by bencollins on Saturday 22 August 19:33

[Slow]

Thats not that heavy of a weight to be fair. Would just drive on forwards until the trailer sits level with most weight over the axle.

As in not too far forward or it tilts nose down, nor too far back to be trying to lift the van.

[Zoobeef]

I always put my vx220 on rear first. You want as much weight as you can over the wheels of the trailer. You just need to watch the tow hitch limit so you do put too much weight forward.
My cars limit is 70kg so a crude way I use is to measure the hitch to the floor then stand on it and measure again then connect the trailer and load the car. It should tell me if I'm putting more or less 70kg on the tow hitch then.

[bencollins]

Thanks gents.
So reverse on and C-of-G between trailers axles.
Makes sense to let the trailer carry the load but also keep the drivetrain weight blob nearer the van.
Car has chin spoiler and long overhang so reversing better for that too ... Mondial.

[mattydoh]

Can anyone clarify I am reading this correctly - I currently tow a 1300kg MAM trailer behind a 1800kg MAM tow car as I believed I had to be under 3500kg MAM train weight. A quick check of the gov.uk website has revealed the following (I passed my normal car test February 2009 - no B&E):



Licences held from 1 January 1997

If you passed your driving test after 1 January 1997 and have an ordinary category B (car) licence, you can:

drive a vehicle up to 3.5 tonnes or 3,500kg MAM towing a trailer of up to 750kg MAM
tow a trailer over 750kg MAM as long as the combined weight of the trailer and towing vehicle is no more than 3,500kg



So therefore, I could tow my trailer which weighs around 900kg laden behind any vehicle that weighs less than 2600kg at the time of towing. Has the law changed regarding this as I'm sure it used to be 3500kg MAM rather than actual?

[R0G]

mattydoh said:

Can anyone clarify I am reading this correctly - I currently tow a 1300kg MAM trailer behind a 1800kg MAM tow car as I believed I had to be under 3500kg MAM train weight. A quick check of the gov.uk website has revealed the following (I passed my normal car test February 2009 - no B&E):



Licences held from 1 January 1997

If you passed your driving test after 1 January 1997 and have an ordinary category B (car) licence, you can:

drive a vehicle up to 3.5 tonnes or 3,500kg MAM towing a trailer of up to 750kg MAM
tow a trailer over 750kg MAM as long as the combined weight of the trailer and towing vehicle is no more than 3,500kg



So therefore, I could tow my trailer which weighs around 900kg laden behind any vehicle that weighs less than 2600kg at the time of towing. Has the law changed regarding this as I'm sure it used to be 3500kg MAM rather than actual?

Assuming you mean vehicle GVW 1800 when you say 1800 MAM tow car and not mean the towing capacity ??

With a vehicle GVW 1800 and a 1300 MAM trailer that it is 3100 total MAM so 400 under the 3500 total plated MAM weight limit for towing

Licences go on plated weights not actual weights but the dumb Gov sites often miss off the word MAM or miss off the caveat stating that all weights are MAM weights

[bencollins]

All went well once id asked a guy at the port how to ratchet the straps in the right way.
The trailer was only a few inches wider than the track and the sides of the trailer only 1cm below the doorline so could have been stuck as leccy windows not working and cabriolet roof dodgy. Got home ok tho.

[R0G]

bencollins said:

All went well once id asked a guy at the port how to ratchet the straps in the right way.
The trailer was only a few inches wider than the track and the sides of the trailer only 1cm below the doorline so could have been stuck as leccy windows not working and cabriolet roof dodgy. Got home ok tho.

Does the plate on the trailer match the one on the Van ? = assuming its in the UK

[mattydoh]

R0G said:

Assuming you mean vehicle GVW 1800 when you say 1800 MAM tow car and not mean the towing capacity ??

With a vehicle GVW 1800 and a 1300 MAM trailer that it is 3100 total MAM so 400 under the 3500 total plated MAM weight limit for towing

Licences go on plated weights not actual weights but the dumb Gov sites often miss off the word MAM or miss off the caveat stating that all weights are MAM weights

Hi R0G, thanks for the reply.

I was pretty sure I was towing legally - it was just someone told me at work today who said that the wording had been revised and the MAM bit had been removed

I've actually emailed the DVLA asking about this as I am 99% sure the wording on the gov.uk website has changed (I checked and triple checked when I bought car & trailer) and there is now a difference between the wording for those who passed after 2013 and those who passed between 1997 and 2013 - IE those who passed after 2013 have the MAM bit included.

I've also used the license checker thing and that has said below which also makes no mention of the 3500kg being car & trailer MAM rather than actual weight:

"You can drive vehicles up to 3,500kg Maximum Authorised Mass (MAM) with up to 8 passenger seats and a driver (with a trailer up to 750kg). You can also tow heavier trailers if the total weight of vehicle and trailer isn’t more than 3,500kg."

It makes little difference to me but it has piqued my curiosity!

Edited by mattydoh on Tuesday 6th October 20:29

[R0G]

The wording in the RTA has not changed and that is the law not what the dopes put on the websites

Never take Gov websites as always being the law

I looked at a few Gov PDFs on this issue and they all had a caveat stating all weights are MAM weights and it seems some DVLA dope has copied the info in those PDFs across the Gov sites but not the caveats

I have informed them and the DfT many times and they say it is wrong yet nothing has changed !!

[hman]

So am I ok to tow a 2002 RAV4 behind a 2010 xc90 on a 4 wheel trailer with a b+e licence?

[lewisco]

I have also been really confused by the weights on the gov.uk website.

I have a 1999 Range Rover, its weight is 2145KG and GVW is 2780KG.

I'm towing a Westfield which chassis plate says:



What should the trailer plate say to keep allow me to tow legally, if I can at all, on a B license obtained after 1997 but before 2013?

[R0G]

hman said:

So am I ok to tow a 2002 RAV4 behind a 2010 xc90 on a 4 wheel trailer with a b+e licence?

Give me the weights and I'll tell you

[R0G]

lewisco said:

I have also been really confused by the weights on the gov.uk website.

I have a 1999 Range Rover, its weight is 2145KG and GVW is 2780KG.

I'm towing a Westfield which chassis plate says:



What should the trailer plate say to keep allow me to tow legally, if I can at all, on a B license obtained after 1997 but before 2013?

No difference in B licence rules depending when it was passed

Total MAM is 3680 so 180 over the B licence towing rules when using a trailer over 750

On your B licence the max is 750 MAM for a trailer
2780 + 750 = 3530 which is ok because the trailer is not over 750

On a B licence you can tow 750 trailer MAM with a 3500 GVW vehicle but the moment the trailer goes over 750 the 3500 total MAM law applies

[hman]

xc90 GVW = 2700kg
Rav 4 = unladen = 1275, laden weight = 1825kg

on this trailer http://www.helpfulhirings.co.uk/equipment/trailers...

[R0G]

hman said:

xc90 GVW = 2700kg
Rav 4 = unladen = 1275, laden weight = 1825kg

on this trailer http://www.helpfulhirings.co.uk/equipment/trailers...

Link does not work for me

What I really need for a B+E licence holder is ....
The towing capacity for the vehicle
The empty weight of the trailer
The plated MAM of the trailer
The weight you want to put in the trailer