Tests are no longer required for car drivers wishing to tow a trailer. Further to our last News article, this was one of the actions designed to help ease the HGV driver shortage as it was estimated that ending trailer testing should allow examiners to conduct around 30,000 more HGV tests, a huge amount.
In case you are a driver who is looking to tow a trailer, this is what it means for you:
- Since 20th September 2021, you can no longer book or take a car and trailer driving test
- Since the 16th December, if you passed your car driving test from 1 January 1997, you’re now allowed to tow trailers up to 3,500kg MAM.
* Check your car’s handbook to find out its gross train weight (GTW). This is the total allowable weight of the car plus the trailer plus the load.
Next time a driver renews their photocard driving licence, the DVLA will automatically update their driving licence record to show that they’re allowed to tow trailers. They’ll do this by adding the category ‘BE’ to their driving licence
Note that if your driving licence was issued prior to 1st January 1997, there is no change, as those licences include (as standard) the necessary ‘BE’ code, meaning they can drive a car and tow a trailer where the combined weight exceeds 3,500kg
As insurers who deal with the claims in the event of an accident towing a trailer of any kind, we highly recommend that drivers who wish to use their car to tow a caravan or horse box for the first time should book onto a towing-familiarisation course despite the licence changes.
Contact us at Acer Insurance to discuss any single vehicle or motor fleet insurance needs. Our specialist team is here to help and thrive on finding solutions to the most specialist of insurance needs as well as the everyday! We are happy to talk to you about your specific circumstances and work out what insurance cover will insure you have the best protection.
