GENERAL HAULAGE GUIDE

The Legislation covering goods vehicles is very extensive and includes everything from driving licence requirements to hazardous and abnormal loads. The information below is provided as a general guide to assist your business to operate safely and within the law.

DRIVING LICENCES

In order to drive a heavy goods vehicle, you must hold a licence authorising you to drive that particular class of vehicle. The categories are broken down as follows:

• Category C1 - rigid goods vehicle exceeding 3,500 but not exceeding 7,500 kg • Category C1E - rigid goods vehicle as above (C1) plus a trailer (E).

If your driving test was passed prior to 1 January 1997 both of the above categories will appear on your ‘ordinary’ car driving licence and you are legally entitled to drive those classes of vehicle. However, this will be subject to a code 107 ‘restriction’ which means the combined vehicle and trailer must not exceed 8,250kg. This effectively means that you can only tow a trailer of 750 kg, should you wish to tow a larger trailer (over 750 kg) then you must sit and pass a further driving test for an unrestricted C1E entitlement which will allow you to drive a combination up to 12,000kg.

• Category C - rigid goods vehicle exceeding 7,500 kg.

• Category CE - articulated goods vehicle.

MAXIMUM SPEED LIMITS (unless otherwise displayed)

Up to 7,500 kg Single carriageway 50 mph Dual carriageway 60 mph Motorway 70 mph Over 7,500 kg Single carriageway 40 mph Dual carriageway 50 mph Motorway 60 mph

GOODS IN TRANSIT

It is important to be aware that goods being transported come under a separate insurance policy known as Goods in Transit (GiT) and not the motor vehicle cover. In most cases hauliers have adequate cover and there is never an issue but if high value goods are being hauled it is important to make sure the Haulier has adequate cover and under what conditions they adhere to ie. RHA, FTA. It is also essential to have adequate GiT insurance cover when transporting your own goods.

TACHOGRAPHS

Most vehicles used for the carriage of goods by road and with a maximum permissible weight (including any trailer or semi-trailer) of over 3.5 tonnes are in scope of the European Union rules. ‘Carriage by road’ is defined as: ’any journey entirely or in part made on roads open to the public of a vehicle, laden or unladen, used for the carriage of passengers or goods.’ ‘Off-road’ driving is in scope where it forms part of a journey that also takes place on public roads. Journeys made that are entirely ‘off-road’ are out of scope of the EU rules. There are several Agricultural exemptions from the Tachograph requirements. These are:

• Vehicles used or hired without a driver by agricultural, horticultural, forestry, farming or fishery undertakings for carrying goods as part of their own entrepreneurial activity within a radius of 100 km from the base of the undertaking. • Agricultural tractors and forestry tractors used for agricultural or forestry activities within a 100 km radius from the base of the undertaking that owns, hires or leases the tractor.

• Vehicles that are used to carry live animals between a farm and a market or from a market to a slaughterhouse where the distance between the farm and the market or between the market and the slaughterhouse does not exceed 50 km. • Vehicles being used to carry animal waste or carcasses that are not intended for human consumption.

Any other ‘agricultural’ use of a goods vehicle requires that you must use a tachograph.

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