Legal Towing Limit?
- Thread starter Misteeq
- Start date
It is recommended that MPLW (Maximum Permissable Laden Weight) of the trailer should not exceed more than 85% of the kerbside weight of the towing vehicle.
Don't just go off the unladen weight of the trailer - you need to factor in the weight of the contents too
Hope this helps :smile:
Don't just go off the unladen weight of the trailer - you need to factor in the weight of the contents too
Hope this helps :smile:
Not sure what you're asking - is the trailer 1.1tons unladen? Every trailer will be different and I believe will carry a plate saying what the MAM is - the maximum laden weight. Thedifference between the two figures is what you can carry.
A 4x4 actually does not fall under the 85% rule, but cars definitely do. A 4x4 just needs to be able to tow the actual laden weight of the trailer, unless you took your test since 1997 in which case even with your towing test you can only tow the trailer if its MAM falls within your tow car's towing limit. Without a towing test I believ you can't to it, as it's over 750kg.
A 4x4 actually does not fall under the 85% rule, but cars definitely do. A 4x4 just needs to be able to tow the actual laden weight of the trailer, unless you took your test since 1997 in which case even with your towing test you can only tow the trailer if its MAM falls within your tow car's towing limit. Without a towing test I believ you can't to it, as it's over 750kg.
There has been loads of threads about towing. But the unladen weight is not important it is the MAM that is. (will be written on the plate of the trailer). To be legal you van/truck etc must be able to tow the MAM.
So normal trailer (ifor 505) plus two 16.2 horses is about 2500 plus water , tack etc then the vehical must be 10% min over this weight.
It is not about the towing it is more about the stoppinb as the of the trailer weighs more than then car it will 'push' the car when stopping. very dangerous.
NB
Even if you are not going to tow 2 horse or just ponies you still need to be able to tow the full MAM of that trailer unless you take it to be re plated.
So normal trailer (ifor 505) plus two 16.2 horses is about 2500 plus water , tack etc then the vehical must be 10% min over this weight.
It is not about the towing it is more about the stoppinb as the of the trailer weighs more than then car it will 'push' the car when stopping. very dangerous.
NB
Even if you are not going to tow 2 horse or just ponies you still need to be able to tow the full MAM of that trailer unless you take it to be re plated.
I have seen a letter recently from VOSA is it, where they have stated categorically that there are full grandfathers rights for pre97 licence holders, so the MAM is not relevant to older drivers. Pre 97 licence holders need only, as I said, worry about the actual weight they are towing. Post 97 licence holders indeed are goverened by being able to tow the MAM of their trailer.
Sbloom, you are correct in that pre 97 can tow anything up to about 8.5 tonnes but the question was what is the legal towing limit.
Just because you have a pre 97 license still means that your car or towing vehicle has to be legally able to tow the MAM. I am old and can tow on my license but if i was to tow my trailer and lad with a ford escort and I was pulled over I would be illegal. As the MAM is 3000 (for example) and the car is not heavy enough to tow the trailer. I would be breaking the law.
Just because you have a pre 97 license still means that your car or towing vehicle has to be legally able to tow the MAM. I am old and can tow on my license but if i was to tow my trailer and lad with a ford escort and I was pulled over I would be illegal. As the MAM is 3000 (for example) and the car is not heavy enough to tow the trailer. I would be breaking the law.
hi all, this is from another forum
This is the email I sent Vosa
Could you answer a debate which has been raging on an internet forum once and for all?
It concerns the maximum towing weight of the vehicle towing against the plated maximum weight of the trailer (in this case we are talking horse trailers), it assumes the driver to have passed test prior to 1997
group A believe that for example if the trailer has a plated weight of 2800kg then you should only tow with a vehicle that has a towing weight of 2800kg or more and that if you towed with a vehicle with a maximum tow weight of 2600kg even if you were only pulling a shetland it would be illegal. To be legal you should have the trailer replated to 2600kg or buy a vehicle that can pull 2800kg or above
Group B believe that is is only based on the actual weight being towed so if the trailer weighs 1000kg and the horse weighs 600 as long as your vehicle has a tow weight of 1601kg or above you are legal.
Are either group right? If Group A are which law is it that states this.
Whichever group is right can you advise where this is written down, we can find several recommendations but no actual laws?
Both groups want to make sure that no-one is breaking the law or is libel to be fined, equally they want to make sure people aren't buying bigger tow cars for no reason.
Many Thanks
and this the response I got
Karen I refer to your mail of 20 June to VOSA Enquiries on the above subject which has been passed to me to answer. There are two aspects to your question, the technical capability of the car to tow the weight, and driving licence limitations. There is no technical problem with the gross vehicle weight of the trailer exceeding a car's towing capability providing its actual weight does not exceed the towing capability, or if the car also has a stated train weight on its manufacturers plate and the weight of the car, trailer and load does not exceed that train weight . It is entirely normal for vehicles totow trailers which have a GVW exceeding the towing or GTW capability. Most HGV artic combinations are like this. For driving licence purposes, however, if drivers only have a category B driving licence entitlement then if the trailer exceeds 750 kg GVW then the trailer GVW must not exceed the unladen weight of the car and the totalof the trailer and car GVWs must not exceed 3500 kg. The combination of a trailer with a GVW of 2800 kg (or 2600 kg for that matter) could not therefore be driven on a category B licence. It can however be driven on a category BE ( or B+E on some licences) which anybody who passed their driving test before 1 January 1997 will have. This category does not have the trailer weight or relative combination size limitations. If they haven't got the BE / B+E licence (people need to look at the licence photocard reverse for entitlements) then they will need to take an extra trailer test to get the BE entitlement. According to the above and referring to your mail it is Group B that arecorrect. Group A are getting confused about issues related to category Bdriving licence restrictions which are irrelevant in the forum context ofpre-1997 qualified drivers. I hope this answers your question adequately. Steve Whitehart Heavy Vehicle Process Manager Testing and Support Services Customer Service CentreVOSA Swansea
So driving licence laws are quoted but still no laws on towing weights but I conceed it does look like you can tow with a less able car although I still wouldnt want to and I am guessing that you would only get a trailer replated if it affected your licence not because of the car? I do think this is something that could be put into a clear concise document as there is so much confusion out there.
This is the email I sent Vosa
Could you answer a debate which has been raging on an internet forum once and for all?
It concerns the maximum towing weight of the vehicle towing against the plated maximum weight of the trailer (in this case we are talking horse trailers), it assumes the driver to have passed test prior to 1997
group A believe that for example if the trailer has a plated weight of 2800kg then you should only tow with a vehicle that has a towing weight of 2800kg or more and that if you towed with a vehicle with a maximum tow weight of 2600kg even if you were only pulling a shetland it would be illegal. To be legal you should have the trailer replated to 2600kg or buy a vehicle that can pull 2800kg or above
Group B believe that is is only based on the actual weight being towed so if the trailer weighs 1000kg and the horse weighs 600 as long as your vehicle has a tow weight of 1601kg or above you are legal.
Are either group right? If Group A are which law is it that states this.
Whichever group is right can you advise where this is written down, we can find several recommendations but no actual laws?
Both groups want to make sure that no-one is breaking the law or is libel to be fined, equally they want to make sure people aren't buying bigger tow cars for no reason.
Many Thanks
and this the response I got
Karen I refer to your mail of 20 June to VOSA Enquiries on the above subject which has been passed to me to answer. There are two aspects to your question, the technical capability of the car to tow the weight, and driving licence limitations. There is no technical problem with the gross vehicle weight of the trailer exceeding a car's towing capability providing its actual weight does not exceed the towing capability, or if the car also has a stated train weight on its manufacturers plate and the weight of the car, trailer and load does not exceed that train weight . It is entirely normal for vehicles totow trailers which have a GVW exceeding the towing or GTW capability. Most HGV artic combinations are like this. For driving licence purposes, however, if drivers only have a category B driving licence entitlement then if the trailer exceeds 750 kg GVW then the trailer GVW must not exceed the unladen weight of the car and the totalof the trailer and car GVWs must not exceed 3500 kg. The combination of a trailer with a GVW of 2800 kg (or 2600 kg for that matter) could not therefore be driven on a category B licence. It can however be driven on a category BE ( or B+E on some licences) which anybody who passed their driving test before 1 January 1997 will have. This category does not have the trailer weight or relative combination size limitations. If they haven't got the BE / B+E licence (people need to look at the licence photocard reverse for entitlements) then they will need to take an extra trailer test to get the BE entitlement. According to the above and referring to your mail it is Group B that arecorrect. Group A are getting confused about issues related to category Bdriving licence restrictions which are irrelevant in the forum context ofpre-1997 qualified drivers. I hope this answers your question adequately. Steve Whitehart Heavy Vehicle Process Manager Testing and Support Services Customer Service CentreVOSA Swansea
So driving licence laws are quoted but still no laws on towing weights but I conceed it does look like you can tow with a less able car although I still wouldnt want to and I am guessing that you would only get a trailer replated if it affected your licence not because of the car? I do think this is something that could be put into a clear concise document as there is so much confusion out there.
Exactly the post I saw, thanks Trieste. Now if you feel that is not enough proof then of course you can continue to tow only the MAM, that is perhaps the safest option. But for those who have a technically safe rig, but can't quite tow their trailers MAM, they may want to take that tiny chance that this chap is wrong.
And with a Ford Escort you can't tow much at all - 1200kg is the legal limit for the larger engines, though of course you should only tow 85% of that as it's not a specialist tow vehicle, but the 1.4 can only tow 700kg top! You don't need to worry about the MAM to be illegal towing with a Focus :wink:
And with a Ford Escort you can't tow much at all - 1200kg is the legal limit for the larger engines, though of course you should only tow 85% of that as it's not a specialist tow vehicle, but the 1.4 can only tow 700kg top! You don't need to worry about the MAM to be illegal towing with a Focus :wink:
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