Motorhome Driving - Driving Licence Categories Required
Everyone who passed their driving test in the UK after 1st January 1997 is restricted to driving a vehicle under 3500Kg MAM (or 3.5 tonnes). This will resrict you to driving smaller motorhomes and campervans, and many low profile models. (MAM is the maximum weight of the vehicle including everyone on board, their luggage and belongings, all of the liquids in the fuel tank, clean water and waste tanks, and the weight of all gas bottles, additional equipment, TV’s and even the portable Sat Nav unit).
The following Categories will be on your driving licence, and I will outline what they mean to you in relation to driving a motorhome or campervan.
Category B:
This restricts you (the driver) to drive a vehicle weighing up to a maximum of 3,500kg, with up to 8 passenger seats and a trailer up to 750kg. To tow anything heavier than 750kg you will need cat B + E on your driving licence.
Category C1:
You can drive vehicles up to 7,500kg and a trailer no more than 750kg. To pull a heavier trailer you will need to have cat C1 + E on your licence.
Category C:
You can drive vehicles heavier than 7,500kg (large vehicles) and again with a trailer up to 750kg. For heavier trailers you will require cat C + E.
For more information, visit this page for the full regulations: http://direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/DriverLicensing/WhatCanYouDriveAndYourObligations/DG_4022547
Younger drivers who only have class B on their licence and are restricted to 35ookg and can only drive a larger motorhome if they:
A. Apply to DVLA to gain provisional entitlement to drive large vehicles(to get C1 provisional status)
B. Take the theory test,
C. Undertake training to drive large vehicles at a HGV or LGV training centre,
D. Sit the HGV or LGV driving test.
The cost to a normal driver to go from Cat B to C or C1 will be in the region of £1,000. For further information on how to add higher categories to your driving licence visit http://direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/DriverLicensing/WhatCanYouDriveAndYourObligations/DG_4022548
At Motorhome City, we hire out different weights of motorhomes and campervans. You can see from the above information that drivers must understand exactly what their entitlement to drive is. A 6 berth Elddis Autoquest has a MAM of 3,500 and can be driven by drivers with Cat B on their licence. A 6 berth Auto-Tral has a MAM of 3,800MAM and cannot be driven by drivers with only Cat B.
