I am currently in the process of getting a 3.5 ton on the road. Having done some research I was satisfied that to run a 3.5 ton a tacho and o license are not required. However, for hire and reward, once you go over the 3.5 ton threshold you are then subjected to the rules which require a tacho and an o license save one or two exemptions which don’t apply to me.
Recently had a conversation with a chap who was running a 3.5 ton and trailer combination and he was adamant that an o license was not required. Some of his work is sourced from Arnold Clarks.
The following is taken directly from the government website -
You need a licence to carry goods in a lorry, van or other vehicle with either:
a gross plated weight (the maximum weight that the vehicle can have at any one time) of over 3,500 kilograms (kg)
an unladen weight of more than 1,525 kg (where there is no plated weight)
There are 3 different types of licence - what you need depends on the work you do.
You’ll need a goods vehicle operator’s licence for a motor vehicle and trailer combination if:
the motor vehicle and the trailer(s) are plated and the total of their gross plated weights is more than 3,500 kg
the total unladen weight of the vehicle and trailer combination is more than 1,525 kg
You don’t need an operator’s licence if your trailer’s unladen weight is less than 1,020 kg and you only carry your own goods.
What this tells me is that provided your 3.5 ton vehicle is plated and you don’t go over your GVW of 3.5 ton you will be ok.
However as soon as you attach a trailer a tacho and an o license are required, because the plated weight of the trailer even if only 200kg for example, puts you over the stated 3,500kg for the total combination of the plated weights.
Further more and even before the consideration of a trailer combination, if your 3.5 ton vehicle is not plated, then you have to have a chassis cab and body that weighs less than 1,525kg ! Well I can’t think of one chassis cab and car transporter body that gets even close. The chassis cab alone weighs there or there about to 1,525, as soon as you attach the transporter body, you will be over and in a hire or reward situation, you need a tacho and o license. Meaning make sure your 3.5 ton transporter is ‘plated’ in order to,avoid the unladen 1,525 which I imagine nearly all 3.5 ton transporters will fall foul of.
Am I right in how I have interpreted the government website information, or is the chap who was adamant and said ‘trust me, you don’t need one’ right ?
Thanks in advance for opinions