Towing Guide - Flipbook - Page 31
Driving licence information
What licence do I need to tow a
caravan?
Rest assured there is a leisure vehicle
that will suit your car and your
capabilities, see below for our handy
guidance.
You need to consider whether
your driving licence will allow you to
tow or drive the leisure vehicle you
want. After December 2021 the UK
Government changed the Category B
driving licence in the UK to grant you
an entitlement to drive any practical
combination of car and caravan, by
granting the B+E category licence
without any further testing of training,
subject only to a generous combined
maximum allowable mass (MAM) of the
combination of 7,500kg (covering most
large cars/4x4s towing caravans).
When the initial licence expires at
age 70, you must make sure that you
tick all of the Categories which you
are currently entitled to , and wish to
continue with – if you don’t – then the
entitlement will be lost, and can only be
re-instated by the holder taking a new
test under current qualification rules.
On a Category B licence, you can
drive a motor vehicle with a MAM of up
to 3,500 kg and tow a trailer with that
vehicle up to a maximum combined
mass of 7,500kg.
There is training readily available
from specialist driving schools to
assist you in undertaking towing of
larger trailers and TowCheck would
recommend that you undertake some
training for yours and other road users
safety.
How large a caravan can I tow legally
in the UK?
A touring caravan with: a maximum
laden weight not exceeding 3,500 kg,
overall width not exceeding 2.55 metres
and overall body length not exceeding
7 metres (excluding drawbar and
coupling) is the maximum size that
can be legally towed by a motor vehicle
whose maximum gross vehicle weight
is less than 3,500 kg (so most 4x4s and
even small/medium sized commercial
van are not allowed to tow caravans
that exceed the above dimensions).
There are very few such large caravans
in the UK, but it is as well to be aware
of this.
NCC Caravan Towing Guide 31
