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Trailer Laws and Driving Licence

Think yourselves lucky that you don't have to register a trailer, like we do here.

Each trailer here has registration documents and is roadworthy tested every 2 years (equiv. MOT) and carries its own registration number plate.

I can only assume that they're tolerant of the UK system for vehicles "temporarily passing through" Romania, as it were. I'll see if I can find out more about that.
 
Unfortunately Clive that's not the case and new trailers do need to be registered in the UK , I posted the above because i remember the subject being discussed on here a while back and it quickly became apparent the law is as usual as clear as mud for most . The laws surrounding registering a trailer or whether or not it needs registering are ambiguous "only after it was built after such and such a date" V "how do they know when i built it" = "the burden of proof is on the owner" blah blah blah .

Personally i think its just another law that generally speaking nobody polices , but crossing borders is a different kettle of fish to popping down the tip with some garden waste so ...........
 
Round my way you can't get a trailer in to the tips these days. I've a 2 ton twin axle which was great for the big once a year clean up but not allowed in anymore.
 
Same with commercial vans and pickups Trev but you can go to the council and pay like 12 quid for a one off permit .
 
Unfortunately Clive that's not the case and new trailers do need to be registered in the UK , I posted the above because i remember the subject being discussed on here a while back and it quickly became apparent the law is as usual as clear as mud for most . The laws surrounding registering a trailer or whether or not it needs registering are ambiguous "only after it was built after such and such a date" V "how do they know when i built it" = "the burden of proof is on the owner" blah blah blah..

But once determined that a trailer does have to be registered in the UK, does it carry its own registration number as it would in the rest of Europe? I'm totally out of touch these days, that's why I'm asking... :think:
 
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I've only done some idle browsing as yet Clive but yes that does seem to be the case . Have to wonder on what database records are kept though and how accessible those records are ?

As we speak i'm sure there are hundreds of people salvaging rusted box section and hubs the older the better to build trailers out of rather than sign themselves up for government grief .

And what exactly is recorded ? i could by a marker plate on ebay stating anything i want "1995 max load 1000kg" and "yeah it looks newer coz i just painted it officer :whistle:

I do struggle to grasp how exactly the laws would be policed , if i have 10 Ifor Williams plant trailers why could i not just register one and put duplicate plates on the rest ?
 
And what exactly is recorded ? i could by a marker plate on ebay stating anything i want "1995 max load 1000kg" and "yeah it looks newer coz i just painted it officer :whistle:

I do struggle to grasp how exactly the laws would be policed , if i have 10 Ifor Williams plant trailers why could i not just register one and put duplicate plates on the rest ?

Here the trailers have to have a VIN plate similar to a motorized vehicle, with load and kerb-weight ratings and the like which means records at the manufacturer's premises, as well as the VIN no. stamped into the chassis. It's a full registration job, so if you make your own, it has to undergo a full vehicle engineering testing procedure. That's why most just buy one ready made and plated. Even then registration is a pain. It took all day just to register our car and that means being there in person all that time filling in stupid forms and answering dumb questions.
 
Well Clive that's pretty much convinced me to start with an old trailer . Another Euro law that does more harm than good :icon-rolleyes:
 
I am not sure it can be that bad to go through the test as you need to build the trailer to a good standard as you dont want it to fall to bits in the middle of nowhere. So why not look at the regs and see. Like when you build a rally or race car you build to the regs and then take it for test just need some confidence in what your doing is good enough.

I am not saying your work will not be good enough shayne.

Stu
 
My welding is not great Stu and for that reason i would over do it for piece of mind , but no doubt the tester would demand strong AND pretty which is beyond my ability as yet , shame really because with practise i reckon i could get quite good . I understand what you mean about the confidence a passing test would give and i have no problem with the regs with regards to lights , size , weight etc but surely a common sense approach would be to just give police the right to order the trailer be tested should they doubt its safety for any reason .
 
My welding is not great Stu and for that reason i would over do it for piece of mind , but no doubt the tester would demand strong AND pretty which is beyond my ability as yet , shame really because with practise i reckon i could get quite good . I understand what you mean about the confidence a passing test would give and i have no problem with the regs with regards to lights , size , weight etc but surely a common sense approach would be to just give police the right to order the trailer be tested should they doubt its safety for any reason .

Strong AND pretty isn't required for MOT standard welding though. It wouldn't be the pretty, rather the quality which determined the strength.
 
And how do they test strength Yogi - do they try to break it lol , nah they just look at it and a tidy bead could be a pro or a handy amateur did it , not so tidy and the hitler hat goes on .
 
Its just a reference test really you see some shocking trailers out there held together with bailer twine i think its to stop that but they are doing it wrong.
They should introduce a mot type inspection for all private trailers. This would improve safety. Not popular but would help get the crap off the roads.
Stu
 
Don't even mind the test if it was just go down and get your certificate job done but i just imported the Hummer remember and i estimate i spent 4 hours on the phone listening to recorded messages + 20 minutes talking to a voice recognition program + 10 minutes talking to real people who had no idea what they were talking about and 2 minutes talking to a guy at HMRC who knew exactly what he was talking about and told me all i needed to know . Thats the kind of thing i can do without .
 
You dont have to tell.me about the idiots. Since we have had our baby we have had to register her 10 times in 8 visits in the same nhs trust. It is shocking.
I spoke to barcleys about a business loan and after getting put through to the 7th person i told them its not worth it a put the phone down.
I could go on all day about t##ts i have spoken to lately.
Stu
 
Its just a reference test really you see some shocking trailers out there held together with bailer twine i think its to stop that but they are doing it wrong.
They should introduce a mot type inspection for all private trailers. This would improve safety. Not popular but would help get the crap off the roads.
Stu

In the name of God why????

No offence but we are nearly at the stage where you have to pass an exam and have three lisences to have a fart!

What about just letting people make their own decisions for once and treating them like adults? I for one would abolish the MOT and its equivilents along with about a million other iditic permits, inspections and certificates, along with 'human resources', health and safety and every other hand holding piece of p1ss brought in compliments of the EU.

People die on the roads and get hurt because the human body is not designed to move about in a
metal box at 70mph.

Stop using it as an excuse to control everyones every move and decision.

Rant over.
 
Once i've seen a trailer fail ...... it was terrible , built out of an old single bed frame with weld on axles and meant for nothing more strenuous than hauling an electric cement mixer and a couple of shovels about . We loaded it with as much scaffolding as we could get in or on it and tied it all down . Half way to our destination , we weren't going fast as we were well aware we had exceeded its max weight by a long shot , and disaster struck ........................ the numberplate fell off :shock: we could have been killed :lol:
 
And how do they test strength Yogi - do they try to break it lol , nah they just look at it and a tidy bead could be a pro or a handy amateur did it , not so tidy and the hitler hat goes on .


What the MOT Tester Saw

6611607155_e0d6aa0e1e_z.jpgDSC00513 by Trackasylum, on Flickr

What the garage did

6611605229_8246ef85f5_z.jpgDSC00512 by Trackasylum, on Flickr

Not started the tales of my 95 yet, but the seller did a repair to the rear axle and MOT's my 95, The repaired part ripped apart in the Western Sahara................because the metal used was only a couple of mm and could be bent by hand.

The law says the repaired part must be at least as strong as the original which was obviously not the case as it lasted 2000miles. When I got home a few stern letters and threats of legal action resulted in the seller buying the 95 back for just under what I paid.

Sometime later I bought it again, but that's another story :)
 
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