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Post 1997 Towing Law Could Lead To £1000 Fines

Are you facing a potential £1000 fine with your touring set up?

By William Coleman

There is no denying the rise in popularity of the touring holiday, or the ‘staycation’ as it is now being referred to. As the demand grows so does the amount of people who are new to towing who may not be fully aware of the laws that regulate towing and other various licence restrictions.

For those that may not be aware the DVLA laws on towing changed on January 1st 1997. Prior to the new law anyone could tow a vehicle and trailer with weight up 8,250KG, which now looking back seems like a massive amount. Post 1997 the weight was limited to a maximum of 3,500KG.

So how do you make sure that you comply with the new laws and avoid a hefty fine with points on your licence? There are several ways that come to mind but the most obvious it make sure that you have the right combination of vehicle and caravan to come under the 3,500KG.

Once you have chosen the right set up be sure to not overload the caravan and towing vehicle, Trust me it does not take a lot to go over the limits. Always drive with little to no water on board as that takes up far too much weight.

The second option I would suggest is to take a B+E course to upgrade your licence. This way you will have the correct licence and avoid any issues with the law. The Caravan and Motorhome Club run a fantastic range of training courses that can help with training prior to taking the B+E test, Click Here.

So just to be totally clear, for those who may not be in the know, the DVLA states that anyone with a regular Category B licence post 01/01/1997 can tow a trailer that weighs up to 750KG, as long as the vehicle they tow with has a maximum combined weight of no more that 3,500KG.

For anyone who was unaware or may be new to the touring world do make sure that you take this into consideration when buying, loading your vehicles of choice. I could not think of anything worse that being strapped up with a £1000 fine as well as points that stick to your licence for 4 years.