sean twr:
4. What operators license would be looking to go for, We would be transporting our own goods to companies, with a view to delivering in the uk and europe.
As it’s your own goods a restricted O licence will cover you for the UK and Europe.
I’ve looked at the regs, and it dosn’t look like you can use a restricted licence in europe. They arn’t very clear though. Nothing new there then.
You can’t ! You can however transport your own goods abroad on a standard national licence !
This years FTA Yearbook says you can though; it’s actually in bold print. I presume there’s been a rule change?
From the RHA handbook 2011 and also confirmed for me many years ago by VOSA after a local haulier told my boss he couldn’t take his racecar transporters abroad on a restricted licence.
"Restricted licence This allows the carriage of goods, but only on own account, within Great Britain and abroad.
The legislation does not require a standard licence for international own account movements.
European regulation 881/92/EEC provides a definition of what is meant by own account operations (or ‘not hire or reward’), containing the following conditions.
− The goods carried must be the property of the undertaking OR must have been sold, let out on hire or hired, produced, extracted, processed or repaired by the undertaking The purpose of the journey must be to carry the goods to or from the undertaking or to move them, either inside the undertaking or outside for its own requirements Motor vehicles used for such carriage must be driven by employees of the undertaking The vehicles carrying the goods must be owned by the undertaking or have been bought by it on deferred terms or hired Carriage must be no more than ancillary to the overall activities of the undertaking The carriage of goods for a subsidiary, sister-subsidiaries or a holding company is also permit- ted under a restricted licence. Carrying goods for hire or reward under a restricted licence can result in licence revocation."
Why don’t you put a trailer on your sprinter you could go to 6300kg or 7000kg train weight depending on the age ,you wouldn’t need an olicence if you only deliver your own goods i would be a cheap fix,you only need a tacho fitted.
Dan Punchard:
Why don’t you put a trailer on your sprinter you could go to 6300kg or 7000kg train weight depending on the age ,you wouldn’t need an olicence if you only deliver your own goods i would be a cheap fix,you only need a tacho fitted.
Would work provided the unladen weight of the trailer is under 1020kg, but I’d check the train weight of your van first as a lot of vans, even 3500kg ones, don’t have much of a train weight. Our 3.5t Sprinter only has a train weight of around 5.5t, The best I’ve found so far are Renault Master 6.5t or Ford Transit 6.3t, but you have to spec a lower range diff to get that train weight.
The 1020kg rule has been finished with regard to olicences, and nearly all 2001 to 2006 sprinters are 6300kg train and most 2006 on are 7000kg train ,a 3.5tonner with any trailer needs olicence for hire and reward but not for own goods.
Are you sure that the 1020 kg reg has been dropped? I emailed vosa last year asking them to clear up a few questions I had about running a van and trailers and o’licences and they stated that the weight of the trailer over 1020kg would effect whether you needed a restricted O’licence or not on own account work.
As for Sprinters well maybe I haven’t seen all the specs, but our 2007 Sprinter defiantly doesn’t have a train anywhere near 6t and so we looked at new vans. I’m sure I didn’t see one that had a train weight of 7t, but then maybe we weren’t looking at vans in that price range.
muckles:
Are you sure that the 1020 kg reg has been dropped? I emailed vosa last year asking them to clear up a few questions I had about running a van and trailers and o’licences and they stated that the weight of the trailer over 1020kg would effect whether you needed a restricted O’licence or not on own account work.
As for Sprinters well maybe I haven’t seen all the specs, but our 2007 Sprinter defiantly doesn’t have a train anywhere near 6t and so we looked at new vans. I’m sure I didn’t see one that had a train weight of 7t, but then maybe we weren’t looking at vans in that price range.
This info is from the DfT GV74 notes. (last updated in December 2011)
Small trailer exemption
A trailer with an unladen weight of less
than 1,020kg need not be taken into account in the weight calculation for a vehicle pulling a trailer. It therefore can be ignored for the purposes of adding up total gross weights or unladen weights to determine whether they are above the threshold for requiring an operator’s licence.
However, this exemption does not apply if
you are carrying other people’s goods for hire or reward (e.g. working as a courier or freight transport business). In such circumstances, the weight calculation must include any trailer attached (irrespective of the trailer’s weight). In this case, if the vehicle and trailer combination exceeds 3.5 tonnes gross plated weight or (where there is no plated weight) an unladen weight of more than 1,525 kg) , a standard licence is required.
A restricted licence only allows you to carry your own goods on your own account within Great Britain and the EU. You do not have to satisfy the requirement of professional competence to get a restricted licence and the rates of financial standing may be less. However, you should obey the same rules as for a standard licence.
First of all thanks guys for all the really helpfull advice, answer and speed i got them was amazing, your a credit to the forum.
looking into things and the wording we are ok with restricted license, got all paper work printed and sorted, the criteria we are ok with, for operators license, driver ok, as we have the right class on license and know we will have to take the test, not a problem there. digi card forms are downloaded and in hand also. so again, great advice, great links.
Now the next thing im looking for, is driver hours on a tacho, what are they, where can i find them, also is there anything hidden things we should be looking for
sean twr:
Now the next thing im looking for, is driver hours on a tacho, what are they, where can i find them, also is there anything hidden things we should be looking for
