British Consulate confirms that A Frame towing in Spain is illegal

[BGD]

I noticed the updated advice on the British Consulate website, which now accurately describes the situation as it has always been under Spanish law:-

 

 

"Towing a car with a motorhome.

Towing a car behind a motor home using an A-frame is illegal in Spain and you will be fined for using one."

 

 

Source:

http://ukinspain.fco.gov.uk/en/help-for-british-nationals/living-in-spain/cars

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Discuss.......... ;-)

[Dr Dave]

As its a grey area here i suppose that's no surprise. I hope the 'A' frame manufacturers who guarantee that there system is legal in Europe are well insured.

Where there is blame .........

Good spot by the way.... forewarned is forearmed

[Rayjsj]

No 'grey area' about that is there ! As long as we in the UK don't follow suit and Ban them.

As they are a Safe and convenient way of taking 'small' transport with you (and please don't talk about Bikes or scooters, we are disabled and can't ride them). And manhandling a trailer to load and unload is a 'No Go' as well. Ray

[ukhymerman]

Hi fellow romer

 

Do not dispair - as usual this is an old advise for residents living in Spain and does not apply to UK residents visiting for under 6 months

 

The clue is in the thread like which say specifically for "Brits living abroad"

 

hope this helps you fellow TOAD's put your mind at ease

 

happy romer

[malc d]

ukhymerman - 2012-01-29 8:54 AM

 

Hi fellow romer

 

Do not dispair - as usual this is an old advise for residents living in Spain and does not apply to UK residents visiting for under 6 months

 

The clue is in the thread like which say specifically for "Brits living abroad"

 

hope this helps you fellow TOAD's put your mind at ease

 

happy romer

 

 

 

That sounds like a very risky interpretation !

 

Is there anything else " illegal in Spain " that visitors are allowed to do ?

 

 

:-D

 

p.s. Welcome to the forum by the way .

 

;-)

[BGD]

ukhymerman - 2012-01-29 8:54 AM

 

Hi fellow romer

 

Do not dispair - as usual this is an old advise for residents living in Spain and does not apply to UK residents visiting for under 6 months

 

The clue is in the thread like which say specifically for "Brits living abroad"

 

hope this helps you fellow TOAD's put your mind at ease

 

happy romer

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sorry - but that is utterly the wrong interpretation.

 

 

The Road Traffic law in Spain does not distinguish at all between Spanish people and foreigners, or by how long you are in the country.

It simply says, and has always said, that a vehicle towing another vehicle, is illegal on any Spanish roads.

 

All that has changed is that "Trafico" (the National Police Traffic Control, dept) are now acting much more robustly in stopping and fining those foreigners who flout this law; and the UK Consulate is now publicising this illegality to help stop other Brits fall foul of this long-standing Spanish road traffic law.

 

It is not old advice. it has only very recently been added to the UK Consulate website, I assume in responses to queries from the increased number of Brits who've been stopped and fined whilst passing through Spain, whilst towing illegally in this country.

 

Towing using an A-Frame is a grey area of law in the UK.

It ain't and never has been in Spain. It's illegal here.

In the old days the Police didn't bother to stop/fine foreign people who flouted this law. That has changed; now they are enforcing it a lot more often.

 

You may or may not like this Spanish law. But it is perfectly clear that this is the law in Spain. (Towing a purpose-made trailer upon which a car is secured is totally legal Spain - subject to the usual rules on weights, lighting etc)

 

I'm simply trying to make more people aware of it so they can make an informed choice as to whether to A-frame car-tow here or not.

It really is now very much more likely to cost you a lot of money and a lot of hassle if you are stopped, fined heftily, and are ordered to separate your vehicles and drive them individually from then on.

[ukhymerman]

Hi All

 

I new this would stir up the hornets nest but if you take notice of this then if gives credence to it and the Spanish have won.

 

This thread came specifically from the Brithish Consulate addressed to residents of Spain

 

There is no "gray area" in UK law - the Bullitin issued by the Department of Transport in 1985 clearly states that Towing with A frames that comply with the braking laws etc. are legal in the UK

 

If you then look at the rules for harmonisation of mutual recognition of transport law within the EC it clearly states that if a product satisfies the rules of one member state it must be allowed free passage in all other member states. That is the whole point of CE certification - we have to accept Spanish products here with a CE mark and the same applies in Spain

 

Hope this helps

 

ukhymerman

[DJP]

BGD - 2012-01-29 10:50 AM

 

ukhymerman - 2012-01-29 8:54 AM

 

Hi fellow romer

 

Do not dispair - as usual this is an old advise for residents living in Spain and does not apply to UK residents visiting for under 6 months

 

The clue is in the thread like which say specifically for "Brits living abroad"

 

hope this helps you fellow TOAD's put your mind at ease

 

happy romer

 

Sorry - but that is utterly the wrong interpretation.

 

It simply says, and has always said, that a vehicle towing another vehicle, is illegal on any Spanish roads.

 

It is not old advice. it has only very recently been added to the UK Consulate website,

 

Towing using an A-Frame is a grey area of law in the UK.

It ain't and never has been in Spain. It's illegal here.

 

You may or may not like this Spanish law. But it is perfectly clear that this is the law in Spain.

 

WHEN did advice become law?

This is at the top of the page from the link

 

Please note that the following information is provided as a guide only. Definitive information should be obtained from the Spanish authorities. For any of the following processes, you may find it helpful to employ a gestor (a representative who carries out administrative dealings on behalf of a private customer or company) to take care of the paperwork for you.

 

The fine is 40 euro. It can be contested, it can be won. It is the fine that is illegal.

"Quote from previous post"

Look at the rules for harmonisation of mutual recognition of transport law within the EC it clearly states that if a product satisfies the rules of one member state it must be allowed free passage in all other member states. That is the whole point of CE certification - we have to accept Spanish products here with a CE mark and the same applies in Spain

:-o :-o

[big olga]

Hola, I spotted this Belgian outfit in Calpe in Oct 2011. they have no towbar or "A" frame as the Smart Car lives in the Garage at the back!

the Motor Home and Smart car have matching reg.numbers.

 

Dave.

[BGD]

DJP - 2012-01-29 1:02 PM

 

BGD - 2012-01-29 10:50 AM

 

ukhymerman - 2012-01-29 8:54 AM

 

Hi fellow romer

 

Do not dispair - as usual this is an old advise for residents living in Spain and does not apply to UK residents visiting for under 6 months

 

The clue is in the thread like which say specifically for "Brits living abroad"

 

hope this helps you fellow TOAD's put your mind at ease

 

happy romer

 

Sorry - but that is utterly the wrong interpretation.

 

It simply says, and has always said, that a vehicle towing another vehicle, is illegal on any Spanish roads.

 

It is not old advice. it has only very recently been added to the UK Consulate website,

 

Towing using an A-Frame is a grey area of law in the UK.

It ain't and never has been in Spain. It's illegal here.

 

You may or may not like this Spanish law. But it is perfectly clear that this is the law in Spain.

 

WHEN did advice become law?

This is at the top of the page from the link

 

Please note that the following information is provided as a guide only. Definitive information should be obtained from the Spanish authorities. For any of the following processes, you may find it helpful to employ a gestor (a representative who carries out administrative dealings on behalf of a private customer or company) to take care of the paperwork for you.

 

The fine is 40 euro. It can be contested, it can be won. It is the fine that is illegal.

"Quote from previous post"

Look at the rules for harmonisation of mutual recognition of transport law within the EC it clearly states that if a product satisfies the rules of one member state it must be allowed free passage in all other member states. That is the whole point of CE certification - we have to accept Spanish products here with a CE mark and the same applies in Spain

:-o :-o

 

 

 

 

 

Advice has never been law. The law has always been law. The "health warning" at the top of the UK Consulate web-page refers to all and any of the advice following it - and it means exactly what it says: it is general advice based upon their English wordings; but the definitive law is in Spanish and is enforced and interpreted by judges in Spanish Courts, and if in doubt with respect to any specific circumstances, consult a Spanish Abogado (lawyer).

 

It might be worth using the "search facility" on this website to re-read some recent earlier threads on this topic.

I have quoted the actual law on this topic in one of them, in Spanish, and also translated it into English for people in this thread:-

 

http://www.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=25123&start=1

 

 

 

I think you might be getting a little confused between the "CE" marking for homologation of products across the EU, and Road traffic laws in different EU States.

 

National road traffic laws have nothing whatever to do with "CE" marks.

Your car will be homologated, but that doesn't mean you can drive it in Spain at above the national limit here of 120 KMs per hour; yet on a German autobahn you can.

 

Road traffic laws and subsidiary regulations are nothing to do with the EU - there is actually no such thing as EU "law at all in fact, only a series of Directives on certain specific matters, which Member nation States then pass into domestic law themselves.

 

 

 

In the UK the domestic law (the Construction & Use Regulations) is moot - it does not say that you can tow using an A frame on UK roads; yet it does not say that you cannot. Until/unless a test case is brought in the UK courts, or the Minister of State amends the C & U regs, that remains the case.

Suppliers are exploiting that "loophole" by saying that a car becomes a trailer when towed via an A- Frame. No-one has yet tested in a UK court that very very ambitious, but nonetheless convenient, interpretation of the C & U regs.

 

 

 

But in Spain the wording of the domestic law here is, and always has been, crystal clear.

The English translation of the relevant passage in Spanish laws is:

 

 

"Article 9.3 of the General Rules of vehicles prohibits the circulation of a motor vehicle dragging another, except when it is damaged or broken down and cannot be towed by another vehicle specifically intended for that purpose, in which case it is allowed only to tow to the nearest town or village where it can be detained without hindering the traffic, and always provided they are not travelling on a motorway or highway.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the circulation of a combination composed of a motor vehicle and a trailer or semi trailer on which another vehicle is transported, is allowed if the combination meets the conditions for driving on public roads and is approved according to Directives 70/156/EEC and 94/20/EC and also does not exceed the maximum permitted length for these combinations which is that of 18.75 meters for trailers and 16.50 meters for semi trailers. "

 

You can see from the above quote that Spanish legislation specifically outlaws the towing of one motor vehicle by another on any Spanish roads (except in the very rare, short-duration, emergency situations detailed above).

A car is a motor-vehicle. It doesn't stop being a motor-vehicle and somehow become a trailer, just because it's sitting behind a motorhome being towed. You know that. I know that. The Spanish Police here know that. Waht is happening now is simply that they are increasingly actively enforcing this law here now, by fining those who break it.

 

[Dr Dave]

Rayjsj - 2012-01-29 12:06 AM

 

No 'grey area' about that is there ! As long as we in the UK don't follow suit and Ban them.

As they are a Safe and convenient way of taking 'small' transport with you (and please don't talk about Bikes or scooters, we are disabled and can't ride them). And manhandling a trailer to load and unload is a 'No Go' as well. Ray

When you say there is no grey area i am not so sure this is a good article to peruse.

http://www.a-tconsulting.co.uk/caravan_tech/towing_a_car.html

I know those who tow are adamant they are legal probably because it suits them. but a balanced view with no bias is required. I don't use or have experience of an 'A' frame and wonder if you can actually reverse the car when it is attached or does it snake to the side because of the camber of the front wheels. Don't assume i am anti 'A' frames i am not i just want to know.

Dave

[donna miller]

Bruce, I fear you are wasting you efforts on people who are so far up their own orifices, nothing anybody else says will ever get through to them, until of course they are stopped and fined, and then they will whinge as to why nobody warned them.

Unfortunately, a lot of people spend 2 weeks a year in another coutry and suddenly become experts on the laws therein.

So on behalf of the majority of people who DO take notice of the advice of forum members living in foreign countries we like to frequent, then I apologise.

 

 

I for one would rather believe what was advised on a government website than the 'opinions' of biased 'experts' on a public open forum.

 

[hymer1942]

Evening all, you will remember I started the thread some time ago " A FRAME FINES ", I am in Spain now minus my toad, and heard today that a freind of mine [ 1st time towing ] was stopped this week near Valencia on the way to Mojaca fined 40 Euros and made to disconnect the car. Barrie

[Brian Kirby]

Rayjsj - 2012-01-29 12:06 AM

 

No 'grey area' about that is there ! As long as we in the UK don't follow suit and Ban them.

As they are a Safe and convenient way of taking 'small' transport with you (and please don't talk about Bikes or scooters, we are disabled and can't ride them). And manhandling a trailer to load and unload is a 'No Go' as well. Ray

The Spanish have not "banned" A frames. It is the practise of towing one road vehicle with another, unauthorised, vehicle that is banned under Spanish law. That is mainly why the argument that an A frame should be legal in Spain under the Vienna convention fails. Towing is towing, it matter not with what you tow. A car cannot become a trailer, because it is registered as a car, if in doubt, look in its V5C. The famous "grey area" exists under UK law only.

[Brian Kirby]

ukhymerman - 2012-01-29 11:49 AM

.........................There is no "gray area" in UK law - the Bullitin issued by the Department of Transport in 1985 clearly states that Towing with A frames that comply with the braking laws etc. are legal in the UK ................................ukhymerman

To be absolutely clear, and so that we may all draw our own conclusions, could you please post that Bulletin, or post a link to it?

 

All I have seen hitherto is an opinion from a civil servant at the DfT, that says he believes such an arrangement should be legal, but also points out that its legal status has never been tested in an English court.

[Dr Dave]

ukhymerman - 2012-01-29 11:49 AM

 

Hi All

 

I new this would stir up the hornets nest but if you take notice of this then if gives credence to it and the Spanish have won.

 

This thread came specifically from the Brithish Consulate addressed to residents of Spain

 

There is no "gray area" in UK law - the Bullitin issued by the Department of Transport in 1985 clearly states that Towing with A frames that comply with the braking laws etc. are legal in the UK

 

If you then look at the rules for harmonisation of mutual recognition of transport law within the EC it clearly states that if a product satisfies the rules of one member state it must be allowed free passage in all other member states. That is the whole point of CE certification - we have to accept Spanish products here with a CE mark and the same applies in Spain

 

Hope this helps

 

ukhymerman

The bullitin you mention dated 1985 (was anyone using an 'A' frame then?)

[Arthur Brown]

Hi

What is it with you people, Bruce tells you how it is, don't shoot the messenger. You decide whether or not you are going to take the chance and the result is of your own doing. The law of the land in Spain says it is illegal to tow another vehicle with a vehicle - simples. If, as someone suggests to comply gives in well on your own head be it. I do not care what you do individually but I do thank Bruce for bringing to our attention what the current law is. This allows 'us' to decide what to do - take a chance or comply. I know where I am in this.

Bruce (and others) please keep us informed of any laws we should be aware of in Spain. Some of us are interested.

Art

[flicka]

 

Looking at the link, I interpreted it as "from the UK Embassy in Spain applicable for British Residents Living in Spain"

 

This has always been the case and nothing has changed i.e. that as a UK resident visiting for under 6 months then you must be allowed free passage under the EC harmonisation rules for the movement of goods commonly know as CE certification.

 

In effect, IMO Spain are operating outside overriding EU Law, in this matter.

BUT relying on no one taking them before the EU Courts.

[Dr Dave]

Arthur Brown - 2012-01-29 9:20 PM

 

Hi

What is it with you people, Bruce tells you how it is, don't shoot the messenger. You decide whether or not you are going to take the chance and the result is of your own doing. The law of the land in Spain says it is illegal to tow another vehicle with a vehicle - simples. If, as someone suggests to comply gives in well on your own head be it. I do not care what you do individually but I do thank Bruce for bringing to our attention what the current law is. This allows 'us' to decide what to do - take a chance or comply. I know where I am in this.

Bruce (and others) please keep us informed of any laws we should be aware of in Spain. Some of us are interested.

Art

well said

[BGD]

flicka - 2012-01-29 9:21 PM

 

 

Looking at the link, I interpreted it as "from the UK Embassy in Spain applicable for British Residents Living in Spain"

 

This has always been the case and nothing has changed i.e. that as a UK resident visiting for under 6 months then you must be allowed free passage under the EC harmonisation rules for the movement of goods commonly know as CE certification.

 

In effect, IMO Spain are operating outside overriding EU Law, in this matter.

BUT relying on no one taking them before the EU Courts.

 

 

 

 

 

There seems STILL to be some misunderstanding then over this.

 

Forget the "6 months rule" - That's a complete red herring in this context.

That is the 183 consecutive day limit within which you are allowed to use a non-Spanish vehicle on Spanish roads, before you have to either remove it from the country, or re-register it onto Spanish plates. Same rules applies across mots (all?) other EU member states. It's got nothing to do with A-Frame whatsoever.

The ban on the use of A-Frames is about TWO vehicles linked together; one towing the other, on any Spanish road. That action is as illegal here in the first minute that you do it as in the ten-millionth minute.

 

Spain is NOT saying that you cannot bring an A-frame into the country, They are NOT restricting the movement of those " goods" at all.

What their law says, and has always said, is that towing a vehicle with another vehicle on any Spanish road is illegal. it is that action which is illegal here.

 

Bring an A-frame into the country, no problem.

If you really want to, then use it to tow another vehicle round your own farm/estate/private land, or indeed anyone elses private land or campsite etc with their permission, no problem.

 

But if you use it attached to one vehicle and tow another vehicle with it on a public highway, then that towing act is a specifically banned action in Spain; and thus you are committing an offence under the national Traffic law here.

It is not because you are in possession of, or are using an A-frame specifically that you are committing an offence. A-Frames are not banned goods.

It is that you are towing one vehicle with another.

You'd be committing the exact same offence if you towed one vehicle with another using a bar, or a tow-rope, or a steel hauser, or any other method.

 

 

 

It's not too difficult really in the end: TOWING ONE VEHICLE WITH ANOTHER ON SPANISH ROADS IS ILLEGAL.

That's it. Love it or hate it. That's Spanish law.

Risk it, or don't do it: up to you.

 

Just don't say that I didn't keep trying to warn you guys.

 

[ukhymerman]

Hi BGD and others

 

As I started the defence of Brits TOADING aboard I would like to correct BGD on his interpretation

 

He's quite right with his general towing ban principle but it falls down when you consider that the UK department of Transport have ruled that a car becomes a trailer when being towed on an approved A frame

 

Show me any legislation that says a trailer cannot be towed in Spain - indeed many of you advocate this as an alternative

 

This is were the EC harmonisation rules kick in for what is allowed in one Country must be allowed free passage in all other member states

 

Again I hope this helps

 

ukhymerman

[olley]

The DVLA said in their OPINION if it met all the trailer regulations it was classed as a trailer. Harmonisation rules? try taking a radar detector into France. B-)

 

Ian

[Robinhood]

olley - 2012-01-30 8:40 AM

 

The DVLA said in their OPINION if it met all the trailer regulations it was classed as a trailer. Harmonisation rules? try taking a radar detector into France. B-)

 

Ian

 

.....or driving in the majority of the EEC at 17, on a valid, UK-issued, full driving licence.

 

(In much of the EEC, minimum driving age is 18, and is enforced, even for UK licence holders)

[BGD]

ukhymerman - 2012-01-30 6:21 AM

 

Hi BGD and others

 

As I started the defence of Brits TOADING aboard I would like to correct BGD on his interpretation

 

He's quite right with his general towing ban principle but it falls down when you consider that the UK department of Transport have ruled that a car becomes a trailer when being towed on an approved A frame

 

Show me any legislation that says a trailer cannot be towed in Spain - indeed many of you advocate this as an alternative

 

This is were the EC harmonisation rules kick in for what is allowed in one Country must be allowed free passage in all other member states

 

Again I hope this helps

 

ukhymerman

 

 

 

 

 

 

Oh, for pities sake man!

 

It matters NOT ONE JOT what a Civil Servant in a UK Government Department hazarded a guess at what A UK judge MIGHT conclude if faced with a case to determine whether a car miraculously transforms itself into a "Trailer" by the addition of an A-Frame on UK roads.......SPAIN IS NOT THE UK.

 

Do you really still not see?

SPAIN IS NOT THE UK. SPAIN HAS DIFFERENT LAWS.

 

 

 

Domestic UK road traffic law (and remember, that Civil Servants guess from some years ago, oft-repeated by mis-guided A-Framers as some sort of conclusive proof of legality in the UK), has NOTHING WHATSOEVER to do with domestic Spanish road traffic laws. Nothing whatsoever.

 

In Spain, the law is perfectly clearly written here. No ambiguity. No grey area. I quoted it above. You cannot tow one vehicle with another.

 

The fact that a car is a motor vehicle, and if an A-frame is bolted to the front of it, it remains a motor vehicle, is blindingly obvious.

 

It's papers say it is a motor vehicle.

It has an engine.

It is designed as a motor vehicle.

It is registered not as a trailer but as a motor vehicle.

It's purpose is to be driven around.

 

If you tried to tell any Spanish Police Officer or Magistrate or Judge that your car was magically temporarily not a car at all just because you'd bolted a bracket to the front of it, you'd probably be committed as insane.

You would certainly be required to take an eyesight test to check whether you can recognise a motor vehicle when you see one; and maybe a reading test to check your understanding of clear legal rules like "On Spanish roads it is illegal to tow one motor vehicle with another motor vehicle"

 

 

You and Germans can drive on some German autobahns at whatever speed you like. You and they can't on UK roads. The road trafiic laws are differnt between countries. They are not centrally set by the EU, or anyone else. Each coiuntry makes it's own domecti law.

 

In addition, each countries judges interpret they legislation when faced with cases testing it's scope, according to their own precedents and Constitutional framework.

 

In the UK there is a principle of legal interpenetration based upon exact wording. Thus the attempts by A-Framers to "pick apart of the word "trailer" and stretch its meaning to breaking pint to try to get something that was never even invented when the Construction & Use Regs were written, covered as a "trailer". This might or might not convince a Judge in a Uk Court. i have enormous doubts personally, unless you get a blind judge. But until such a legal test there, no-one can say definitively that A-Frames are illegal, nor that they are legal.

 

But in most of the rest of the World, Spain included, the test of Law in the Courts is NOT based upon picking apart exact wordings, but upon what was MEANT by the Legislators; what was the INTENTION of the Legislators when they framed that particular law.

You would not have a snowballs chance in Hell of convincing a Spanish Judge, or anyone else, that when the law here specifically says " towing one motor vehicle with another", that your car somehow stops being a motor vehicle and becomes a trailer because of a metal bracket attached to the front of it.

 

Buy hey, what do I know about Spanish road traffic Law. What do the Spanish Law Enforcement officers know about their own countries road traffic law. What do the Spanish Courts know about their own countries road traffic law.

 

Test your theory.................Pop across with your A-Frame, get pulled and fined, have a row with the Trafico Cops - accuse them of stupidity because they cannot see that it isn't a car that you're towing and refuse to pay the fine and refuse to disconnect your car from behind your motorhome. Get both seized and impounded. Spend a week in Jail for it and get yourself a fine of a thousand euros to be paid before you get your two motor vehicle back, then appeal to magistrates courts, then to High Court, and then to the Spanish Supreme Court.

And you never know; maybe a Supreme Court judge in Spain will agree that Spanish Law and the Spanish Constitution, should be for the first time ever in history, subjugated to change at the guess of a UK Civil Servant in a memo some years ago when asked to have a stab at interpreting what a UK judge MIGHT say in accordance with UK law.

 

Good luck Sir.

 

[donna miller]

olley - 2012-01-30 8:40 AM

 

The DVLA said in their OPINION if it met all the trailer regulations it was classed as a trailer. Harmonisation rules? try taking a radar detector into France. B-)

 

Ian

 

If it was a 'TRAILER' then it wouldn't need Road Tax, MOT or Insurance or a number plate of its own would it!

 

So here's the challenge:

 

For all you people who are so adamant they legally become a trailer when attached to a tow vehicle , tow one around on the back of your car or motorhome for 6 months (UK roads will suffice), only ensure that it has none of the aforementioned documents and see how far you get before you get a pull, in fact, leave the A-Framed vehicle attached to the car when not in use, then as a 'TRAILER' there is no need to declare SORN on it either and you can (by your own claims that whilst attached it is a trailer) legally leave it on a public highway with no numberplate either couldn't you.

Then at the end of that trial you could come back on here and let us know whether the Police, council, DVLA etc. regarded the motor vehicle attached to the tow vehicle by the A-frame as a trailer, in which case no offence would have been committed (especially the one in respect of no insurance which brings 8-12 penalty points, seizure of the vehicle and often destruction), or whether in fact you get booked for all 3 major ones including the DVLA clamping then removing your TOAD because there is no current VED.

British motoring law on registration of vehicles does not allow for multi class vehicles, so it is either a motor vehicle (i.e. with a motor, the clue is in the title) or it is a trailer, it cannot be both.

And in the eyes of the law, you cannot be prosecuted for something which isn't against the law.

Trailers do NOT have the means for motorized propulsion, nor are they self steering (unless they are commercial goods vehicle trailers, in which case you would be unlicenced to tow them behind a PLG or Light goods vehicle.

 

Despite all the passionate claims, I guarantee not one of the " oh yes they are legal because..." brigade, has got the bottle to stand by their convictions (no pun intended) and do the above, and if they do and come back with definitive proof that they do not legally need any those documents whilst the TOAD is attached and being towed on a public highway because it is then a trailer not a motor vehicle, then I'll donate £100 to the charity of their choice.

 

You could phone the DVLA up on 10 different days with the same question and you will get 10 different answers (always "in my opinion"), and believe me, we as a company have had to have dealings with them continually for 15 years.

 

 

 

Oh yes, and when you get the definitive answer, pop over to Spain, cos then if you get ticketed here, due to European harmonisation, you'll have no complaint about getting a ticket over there will you.