3650kgs @ 71 years old

[Rayjsj]

PJay - 2014-12-13 7:13 PM

 

Do over 70's REALLY need to drive heavy large motorhomes? Normaly only 2 people in them.The chances are that at some stage any one could have a heart attack or other sudden health problem (even under 70) but higher percentage as one gets older .We manage very well with 3500t for long periods of time If you can't do without home comforts, then stay at home more.

 

Nearer 80 than 70

PJay

 

Yes we do,(need to drive Large Motorhomes) and No we will not (stay at Home). What might suit you, does not suit everyone. We take 2 large labradors away with us, and our van suits us (2) perfectly,for months at a time, while I can still pass the medical, I will continue to do so. Don't Generalise, we are all differant, thank goodness. Actually many vans Plated at 3500kgs have much higher load capability, but are downplated to conform to the arbitary 3500 limit. That doesn't make, say 3850 or 4250 plated vans any bigger.

Ray

[Harvey]

betsy - 2014-12-12 11:27 PM

 

My recent experience of trying to renew one's entitlement to continue to drive a 3,500kg plus motorhome (mine is plated at 4,000kg) when turning 70 years young is still something that "niggles" me.

 

 

During my annual D licence renewal I have similar experiences to yours. It usually takes maybe three months before I receive my new licence. However my new licence then runs from the date that they send it to me, so runs for a year from then, not for nine months!

 

Your initial application goes into a queue. If they subsequently write to you for more information, or to your doctor with a questionaire the replies will then not go directly to your 'file' but to the end of the queue again!

 

I did once ask if I could have my licence returned to me because I 'may' be needing to travel abroad. They would not send me a licence with the 'D' cat on it but they did send me a licence with all my other categories on it.

 

The form for the D (bus) and C (lorry) licence is a D48. In the checklist of things to send with it is a list of reasons why 'I cannot enclose my driving licence'. These include: Lost / Stolen. Defaced. Destroyed. Kept for employment purposes and Retained as it has less than three months to run!

 

hth

 

Harvey

[colin]

Sophie2 - 2014-12-13 6:59 PM

 

I see our point to some degree but surely there should be some sort of classification that recognises there are "Privately used" vehicles in between the 3.5t and 7.5t - the latter weight which the C1 Motorhome driver would be able to drive but (most likely) would never wish to.

 

And "Private" and "goods" is something of a contradiction in terms when relating mortorhomes to HGV's.

 

More complications arise when companies such a Eurotunnel use the DVLA categories to base their tariffs, leading to confusion when trying to book a "Motorhome" on the tunnel.

 

I think you have got your blinkers on, because under 3.5t the 'goods' part doesn't dissapear, it's 'private light goods'.

[StuartO]

DVLA really are unimpressive aren't they? They have a regulating role but as anAgency of Government with a ustormer interface, they should also be assessed in terms of customer service.

 

No doubt there are decent people who work there who try hard to do their jobs properly and promptly, but I don't believe that as an organisation, DVLA delivers a decent service at all.

 

When we had Local Offices of DVLA we could go in there and talk to someone and that sometimes helped to unclog the system and even to get things done quickly. But withdrawing behind a mail-only and telephone-only interface,makes them unaccountable in an unsatisfactory way.

[Derek Uzzell]

colin - 2014-12-15 12:04 PM

 

Sophie2 - 2014-12-13 6:59 PM

 

I see our point to some degree but surely there should be some sort of classification that recognises there are "Privately used" vehicles in between the 3.5t and 7.5t - the latter weight which the C1 Motorhome driver would be able to drive but (most likely) would never wish to.

 

And "Private" and "goods" is something of a contradiction in terms when relating mortorhomes to HGV's.

 

More complications arise when companies such a Eurotunnel use the DVLA categories to base their tariffs, leading to confusion when trying to book a "Motorhome" on the tunnel.

 

I think you have got your blinkers on, because under 3.5t the 'goods' part doesn't dissapear, it's 'private light goods'.

 

Historically, Tax Class 11 (into which motor caravans up to 3500kg weight fall for vehicle-tax purposes) was written as “Private/Light Goods” indicating that the class applied to two types of vehicle.

 

The current Form V149 that shows the rates of vehicle taxes and tax classes describes Tax Class 11 as

 

"Private or light goods vehicles (PLG) Tax Class 11 (goods vehicles weighing no more than 3500kg)”

 

while Tax Class 10 (into which motor caravans over 3500kg weight fall for vehicle-tax purposes) is described as

 

"Private HGV Tax Class 10 (weighing more than 3500kg)”

 

As I’ve said many times in the past, the UK vehicle taxation system is artificial, has evolved over time according to changing governments’ policies and whims, and there’s no point expecting it to apply beneficially (or even rationally) to motor caravans just because motorcaravanners may believe it should. It’s just a means to collect money - it doesn’t have to make sense!

 

The present motor caravan vehicle-tax classification arrangements are detailed here

 

http://www.thencc.org.uk/news_press/news_detail.aspx?NewsID=269

[Sophie2]

colin - 2014-12-15 12:04 PM

 

Sophie2 - 2014-12-13 6:59 PM

 

I see our point to some degree but surely there should be some sort of classification that recognises there are "Privately used" vehicles in between the 3.5t and 7.5t - the latter weight which the C1 Motorhome driver would be able to drive but (most likely) would never wish to.

 

And "Private" and "goods" is something of a contradiction in terms when relating mortorhomes to HGV's.

 

More complications arise when companies such a Eurotunnel use the DVLA categories to base their tariffs, leading to confusion when trying to book a "Motorhome" on the tunnel.

 

I think you have got your blinkers on, because under 3.5t the 'goods' part doesn't dissapear, it's 'private light goods'.

 

Yes-fully aware of that (rolling eyes-without blinkers)

[Willo8660]

I can't say for the continent because I have never been stopped there for anything, but the fear of of being stopped in the UK is far greater than the reality.

Older citizens will remember how the Police used to Police the roads and think that this is still the case. The truth is the Police budgets have been cut to such a degree that road Policing is virtually non existent. Traffic Police literally deal with "accidents". They have been re-focused to deal with criminal matters and therefore don't give a toss about a) stopping a motorhome and b) taking it to a weighbridge. (Which I can assure you is a very time consuming matter)

Vehicles may speed with impunity safe in the knowledge that only the fastest vehicle will be targeted by an officer of the law- it's only the speed cameras that the motorists genuinely fear.

And on the 3500kg limit in France...how can you tell what the plated weight of the vehicle is? Unless it's patently obviously larger than 3500kg? Ours is 3500 but I'm having it plated at 3650 so I can save a little on the annual tax bill ( I won't call it road fund licence because it is just tax). Can we expect the French Police to stop me? I think not.

The UK Police used to target drivers for any misdemeanour but now they are just there to wipe up the after event.

[Sophie2]

Willo8660 - 2014-12-16 1:53 PM

 

I can't say for the continent because I have never been stopped there for anything, but the fear of of being stopped in the UK is far greater than the reality.

Older citizens will remember how the Police used to Police the roads and think that this is still the case. The truth is the Police budgets have been cut to such a degree that road Policing is virtually non existent. Traffic Police literally deal with "accidents". They have been re-focused to deal with criminal matters and therefore don't give a toss about a) stopping a motorhome and b) taking it to a weighbridge. (Which I can assure you is a very time consuming matter)

Vehicles may speed with impunity safe in the knowledge that only the fastest vehicle will be targeted by an officer of the law- it's only the speed cameras that the motorists genuinely fear.

And on the 3500kg limit in France...how can you tell what the plated weight of the vehicle is? Unless it's patently obviously larger than 3500kg? Ours is 3500 but I'm having it plated at 3650 so I can save a little on the annual tax bill ( I won't call it road fund licence because it is just tax). Can we expect the French Police to stop me? I think not.

The UK Police used to target drivers for any misdemeanour but now they are just there to wipe up the after event.

 

True but only partially so. The risk is that you may be pulled over by VOSA (now DVSA) , checked for weight, and issued with Prohibition Notice-which could mean chucking all your gear out until you're within limits. Whilst the Police themselves may be less likely to undertake checks of their own accord, the likelihood of them doing so in conjunction with, and at the behest of, DVSA is still quite high-one which I personally wouldn't like to take

[Willo8660]

Sophie2

 

More chance of winning the lotto jackpot two weeks running than being stopped by VOSA (lol)

Who are more interested in goods vehicles.

IMHO.