as i’ve previousely mentioned,i’m toying with the idea of going artic in the new year for one of the big firms and one option is to hire a trailer off them rather than buy,if i go down this road who’s o’license would the trailer be on,mine or the firms?
yours whilst you pull it, it isn’t possible to have an o licence for a tractor unit only, even if you intend working traction only you must stipulate 1 tractor and 1 trailer on your o licence application.
this to me seems wrong because it means that trailers are actually duplicated over and over again but the rules are the rules daft as they are.
so what happens if you get a pull and a faults found on the trailer?
Simple, the '9’s, inspection notes or in the case of serious C&U offences points head towards your licence. Put in the basic; you’re pulling it, you’re responsible for it!!
Same applies if you hire in an artic or a rigid whilst your vehicle is off the road. Doesn’t matter how negligent the hire company are, you will get the 9 or whatever. You can then sue the hire company afterwards, but by that time the damage is done!
For my sins I`ve been an owner driver since 1979 and have an O licence for a tractor unit only as I do not have parking facilities for a trailer.My work is 38 ton traction and when back at base leave the trailer at customers yard and have never had any problems with the ministry
so the trailers on your costomers o’license?
just wonder how you’d go if you were stopped for a random inspection and your screen disc didn’t show anything for the trailer you’ve got on the back.
yamroamer:
For my sins I`ve been an owner driver since 1979 and have an O licence for a tractor unit only as I do not have parking facilities for a trailer.My work is 38 ton traction and when back at base leave the trailer at customers yard and have never had any problems with the ministry
you’re very lucky 
paul b:
so the trailers on your costomers o’license?
just wonder how you’d go if you were stopped for a random inspection and your screen disc didn’t show anything for the trailer you’ve got on the back.
The disc doesnt show whether it is an artic combination, a rigid or a drawbar, It just shows the name and licence number,but I agree with Denis F, He has been very lucky.
Many trailer operators dont have or need an o licence, so it is down to the haulier to have one!
this is starting to get confussing! 
i hire a trailer on a weekly basis so the hiring company are liable for the condition,mot etc for the trailer but i need to put it my o’license and if theres a fault found by the ministry it’s down to me?
paul b:
this is starting to get confussing!
i hire a trailer on a weekly basis so the hiring company are liable for the condition,mot etc for the trailer but i need to put it my o’license and if theres a fault found by the ministry it’s down to me?
first rule of haulage - everythings your fault
you are responsible for the trailer condition - if your daily walkround check finds a problem then you have to make sure it’s corrected by the hire company before you take it out.
it’s also your responsibility to make sure they hire you a trailer with a current test certificate
You don’t need to specify a particular trailer on your o licence, but you must have a margin for a trailer
Yamroamer said;
For my sins I`ve been an owner driver since 1979 and have an O licence for a tractor unit only as I do not have parking facilities for a trailer.My work is 38 ton traction and when back at base leave the trailer at customers yard and have never had any problems with the ministry
Like everybody else said, very lucky, VOSA’s computer system shows details of O-licence including numbers of vehicles and trailers, both authorised and in possession. If you do not have authorisation for a trailer then you cannot use one, unless it is an exempt trailer or purpose (but why then have a licence?)
Somewhere in my dim and distant past (mainly dim) I seem to remember an o/d being refused an o licence because he hadn’t asked for a trailer authority but his maintenance agreement specified tractor unit and the ministry man said you couldn’t technically operate a tractor unit without trailer authority even if you didn’t own a trailer.
Also always ask for authority to operate 2 units and 2 trailers minimum in case of breakdowns etc.
Hope this helps Rob.
Going back in time when I applied for a O licence(which incidentally was granted provisionally to me on the day I applied) I stated that I only had parking for a unit (small yard)but wanted to work on a traction basis.I was told that has long has I did not own or rent a trailer they could issue a licence for a unit only.I realise of course that should there be a problem with the trailer it would be against my licence even though a trailer isnt specified.Having looked at my licence which I renewed last year it shows authorised vehicle as a rigid of 38tonnes.Over the years Ive been through about 10 or 12 roadside checks with the ministry and have never had a problem and as the yanks say if it aint broke don`t fix it
hmmm…what’s that i can smell…oh yes, its BS, & lots of it in this thread.
(zb■■? & i only put the letters Bravo Sierra!)
Everybody throws in their 4 penneth, trying to be helpful i know, but with few FACTS.
So now I’m gonna do the same 
However i do know:
- It is perfectly possible to apply for a license for a unit only (as i very nearly did)
- It is not necessary to include extra hired in etc. vehicles to cover breakdowns. If your own vehicle is the off the road & you temporarily use a hired/borrowed vehicle, this is covered within your margin. It is not, currently, notifiable unless exceeding a certain number of days. Though this may well change soon as it is now possible to change your specified vehicle details online.
The trailer license issue is a complicated one. When I applied for my license in '99 i phoned VOSA (or whatever name they had that day) for advice as to whether I needed to include a freight forwarders trailer on my license. Despite a long conversation, I was no clearer afterwards, so I included it to be on the safe side. I agree that often trailer licenses will be duplicated for the same trailer/s.
I would suggest if you pull for a haulage co. then the trailer/s will be specified on their license.
If you hire a trailer from from a trailer rental co. such as TIP, it MUST be on yours, as they are NOT operating trailers & therefor do not require a license.
If you pull for a freight forwarder who has their own trailers…well who knows, they may or may not have a license.
If you pull for a company, using their trailers, moving their frieight, AND you PAY THEM trailer hire, why■■?
And to add to the ■■■■■■■■ just written, If you only apply for one vehicle and trailer you do not have a margin to operate another one, even in the case of a breakdown.
If you have a margin, then you can hire a truck to cover breakdowns or accidents but the details must be notified to the TC within 1 month.
A trailer company may or may not have an O licence. A company without any trucks is unable to and not required to specify trailers only ,Therefore an O licence application is not necessary,
Yes you may have a licence for a 38,000 rigid but as previously mentioned, the operator has been very lucky
Just as an afterthought to this post, On the application form GV80 it asks for types of trailers, eg, Box, Fridge, Flat Skeletal, Tipper etc. I think in this case alone then it would be worth applying for 2 trucks and 2 trailers so that you are not restricted to containers or curtainsiders only.
When I had a fleet inspection at my operating centre, I had one trailer of my own and we had a pool of trailers from the company I subcontracted to: The examiner looked at my truck plus 3 trailers and the van I used to travel to work in.
We might all be wrong on this subject but if so why would anyone specify trailers when they only do traction work?
right,i’ve dug out some bumf i’ve had since getting my o’license,he’s what i make of it,your o’license must cover any vehicle and/or trailers you operate,if you stipulate a unit plus a trailer your o’license number will end in ‘A’ to signify artic it then goes on to say if it’s a refrigerated trailer the number will end in ‘AR’ if it’s a tipping trailer it will end in 'AT but i can’t find anything thats says how you stand if doing traction only ie pulling trailers owned by another party.
i would guess that any company that runs their own wagons and trailers but also uses subbies would have to have an o’license to cover all the trailers in use even though some will be pulled by contractors if this wasn’t the case wouldn’t it mean that a trailer pulled by a subbie and put on his o’license wouldn’t be able to be pulled by the companies own tractors even though they own the trailer?
the situation is,i’ve got one vehicle on my license and no trailers at the mo so i shall get in touch with my T/O on tuesday just to clarify things but i can see how it might be possible to do traction only other wise how would you stand if you pulled a different trailer every day as some i know do.
Hello,to clarify my last post it does not state literally 38000kgs rigid on my licence,but in the body type box it gives the vehicle type without showing the A for articulated,therefore by default showing the vehicle specified as a rigid.
At the end of the day ,Paul, you will be better off applying for at least 2 units and 2 trailers. You can always say that the trailers are to be obtained therefore no need for maintenance agreement but if you start off now pulling 3rd party trailers and then want rent or buy your own later you have to submit new application for increase. Having spare units on licence doesn’t cost you anything until you use them and trailers don’t cost anything anyway.
at the moment i’ve got one vehicle and no trailers on the license and shall look into just adding a trailer for the time being other wise it means a major variation to the license and that would mean having to reaply showing financial status,o’license center etc etc