Can I drive a van?
- Thread starter ShivP
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Doh, morning skill.
Soldato
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So what's b1 for ? Can the big sprinter vans carry more than 3.5t (total weight)
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Yeah, apparently,
Category B1
You can drive motor vehicles with 4 wheels up to 400kg unladen or 550kg if they’re designed for carrying goods.
So what about from 550kg to 3.5t?
Soldato
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I'm sure I have b1 on mine. I passed about 10 years ago.
I always thought it meant I could drive a van and the wife who passed about 6 years ago could only drive a car.
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That's always struck me as an odd one, I'm assuming anything over 550Kg is covered by category B which makes me wonder what the point of B1 is?
Just phoned DVLA, cat B allows you to drive any van up to 3.5tonnes however you have to remember MAM(maximum authorized mass) so you could have an unladen van of 3.3t loaded with 0.5t giving you a MAM over 3.5t.
As for B1 she said it was a sub category of B required by the EU but she didn't really know the point of it.
As for B1 she said it was a sub category of B required by the EU but she didn't really know the point of it.
And do please note, these limits are NOT for cars
Soldato
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What about trailers ?
B1 is essentially just a quad bike or small agricultural vehicle with 4 wheels.
B1 used to contain tricycles but when we aligned with the EU they were covered under the A licenses, leaving this odd section. Other than maybe a quad bike carrying a high bale on a farm, can't think of another vehicle that fits in that category.
Category B - if you passed your test on or after 1 January 1997
You can drive vehicles up to 3,500kg MAM with up to 8 passenger seats (with a trailer up to 750kg).
You can also tow heavier trailers if the total MAM of the vehicle and trailer is not more than 3,500kg.
Before 97 it's a max combination upto 8250kg.
B1 used to contain tricycles but when we aligned with the EU they were covered under the A licenses, leaving this odd section. Other than maybe a quad bike carrying a high bale on a farm, can't think of another vehicle that fits in that category.
Category B - if you passed your test on or after 1 January 1997
You can drive vehicles up to 3,500kg MAM with up to 8 passenger seats (with a trailer up to 750kg).
You can also tow heavier trailers if the total MAM of the vehicle and trailer is not more than 3,500kg.
Before 97 it's a max combination upto 8250kg.
All here. Depends when you passed test. Before or after 2013. It's roughly the same it's just the weight of trailer and combined weight of trailer plus car that have some differences. You still need BE.
There's also rules for pre 1997 license pass.
ooooOO my head hurts.
https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/cars-towing-trailers-or-caravans
Of all things in life I've read (some complex stuff) these license categories and rules always spin my head.
Soldato
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So with b1 on my license I can have a van/car + trailer total weight 5t ? 
The standard UK driving license covers category B, which enables the holder to drive any vehicle weighing up to 3,500kg (3.5 tonnes). Whether this vehicle is a car with up to eight passenger seats or a van simply does not matter, they didn't tell you because you can drive a van LWB or otherwise.
It is once you go over 3500Kg in Gross Vehicle Weight that it gets more complicated.
So you get a van that weights 3550kg, you dump the spare and remove passenger seats and sound deadening and get it to 3470kg. Is it fine to drive on class b licence then?