How much can I legally tow?

Something a lot of people are unsure of is how much they can tow. What follows here are details of what your driving licence entitles you to tow.

Those who passed their test before 1/1/1997 can tow any combination of vehicle and trailer up to 8.25 tonnes MAM (maximum authorised mass) or GTM (gross train mass), that is the gross laden weight of the vehicle plus the gross laden weight of the trailer may not exceed 8.25 tonnes, provided that the towing weight of the vehicle is not exceeded of course. The important thing here is the weights are gross, i.e. the weight of the vehicle or trailer plus the maximum rated payload. So, for example it would be legal to drive a combination of a SWB with a kerbweight of 1339kg capable of carrying a payload of 750kg (the driver, 2 passengers and 454kg) could tow a trailer weighing 1000kg capable of carrying a load of 2500kg, assuming the SWB is rated to tow 3.5 tonnes. The total GTM for the outfit here is 5589kg, well within the limits. This also means you could drive a 3 tonne van pulling a 5.25 tonne trailer, or a 7.5 tonne truck pulling a 750kg trailer, or a 750kg car pulling a 7.5 tonne trailer, provided the vehicle is rated to tow the weight. This applies to all the vehicles the licence holder is entitled to drive, namely cars, vans, trucks and minibuses.

For those who passed their test on or after 1/1/1997 its more complicated. For vehicles of up to 3.5 tonnes gross, the trailer may be up to 750kg gross regardless of the tow vehicles weights (subject to the vehicle being rated to tow that of course) OR a trailer of more than 750kg provided the GROSS weight of the trailer does not exceed the UNLADEN weight of the tow vehicle AND the MAM (GTM) does not exceed 3500kg. So, with the SWB above it would be legal to tow a trailer with a gross weight (i.e. trailer and payload) not exceeding 1339kg as the gross weight of the trailer is less than the kerbweight of the SWB and the train weight is 3428kg. This is the standard Category B entitlement. If you want to tow a combination in excess of 3.5 tonnes where the trailer is more than 750kg then you need to take the trailer test to get B+E allowing the combination to exceed 3.5 tonnes gross with no limits laid down as to trailer weight, however the tow vehicle may not exceed 3500kg gross. Of course, this is also subject to the types of vehicles you are entitled to drive, which is basically cars with no more than 8 seats, vans and small trucks not exceeding 3.5 tonnes gross. To drive a minibus (that is any vehicle with more than 8 but less than 17 passenger seats and includes the 109 station wagon) you need to take a minibus test to get category D1.

All very complicated, but the most important point is that all weights referred to are gross, i.e. kerbweight plus maximum rated payload with one exception, and that relates to the kerbweight of the tow vehicle. I've taken all the above straight off the DVLA website.

Now you know how much you are entitled to tow, all that is left is to find out how much your vehicle is rated to pull and what the various laden and unladen weights are so you can see if you are going to be legal. Happy towing.

Mark Rumsey