Legal towing weight for Jeep and 3 Axel Trailer

Cowabunga

Member
Location
Ceredigion,Wales
Sigh.

Read the legislation. It's all in black and white there.

and
You can sigh all you like but the MAM pertains to what used to be called the combination gross train weight. That is the total mass of towing vehicle and trailer. There is a lower maximum towing limit for some vehicles and for some drivers than either the towing vehicles plated weight, the trailer's plated weight, or the combined mass. There is NO imperative to have a plate on either vehicle or trailer to match a limit imposed due to the driver's qualifications. None. If perchance it applied to one, it would need to apply to the other. It doesn't.
 

Highland Mule

Member
Livestock Farmer
I'll just state the legal facts from the regulations.

MAM is defined in the licence regulations to be the same as the MGW, as defined in the construction and use regulations. It is the weight as stated on the plate, if there is one.

A driver who has B and got it after the rule changes is not permitted a combination MGW of over 3500kg.
 

Fendt516profi

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Yorkshire
If you past your car test after January 97 and did not sit an extra trailer test you can tow a trailer as long as vehicle and trailers maximun aloud mass does not exceed 3500kg if the plate on the trailer says mam is 3500kg then there's no way you can tow it which is why @Highland Mule said with a 2000kg vehicle the trailer would have to be replated to 1500kg to be legal for a 'B' category license holder
 

Farmer_Joe

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
The North
thats ridiculous has anyone ever seen a replated trailer?

than what happens if you then put it on another towing vehicle :ROFLMAO: replate again

i have to argee with cowabunga, plus im sure this was covered before and dispelled
 

Cowabunga

Member
Location
Ceredigion,Wales
thats ridiculous has anyone ever seen a replated trailer?

than what happens if you then put it on another towing vehicle :ROFLMAO: replate again

i have to argee with cowabunga, plus im sure this was covered before and dispelled
It doesn't happen, if only because if it was downplated for the reason suggested it would be limited to that weight no matter who towed it next. It is patently ridiculous and is not what is meant by any wording of the Law, which is down to the Courts to interpret. Thank goodness they tend to be more sensible than some here. The way the upland donkey interprets it, the towing vehicle would also need to be replated to the lower limit to suit the driver's limit, as the same rules apply to both, which is an equally absurd notion.
 
Last edited:

tw45

New Member
The RSA ( Irish Road Safety Authority) have an excellent website ( rsa .ie) giving all the information needed for trailer towing, covering license, trailer weights, trailer specs.braking etc
The information is also available in booklet form for both smaller “jeep” trailer combinations and another booklet for agricultural vehicles. Excellent booklets to have for reference.
 

Fendt516profi

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Yorkshire
It doesn't happen, if only because if it was downplated for the reason suggested it would be limited to that weight no matter who towed it next. It is patently ridiculous and is not what is meant by any wording of the Law, which is down to the Courts to interpret. Thank goodness they tend to be more sensible than some here. The way the upland donkey interprets it, the towing vehicle would also need to be replated to the lower limit to suit the driver's limit, as the same rules apply to both, which is an equally absurd notion.
Screenshot_20201215-030023.png

How could a court interpret that any other way than if you only hold a category b license the mam on the trailer plate and the mam on the towing vehicle must not exceed 3500kg
 

Fendt516profi

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Yorkshire
When you are stopped they will go by the plates weights not actual weights when dealing with the driving licence however as ifor Williams proved this is not the case for weights they have to weigh you to prove and prosecute
For a b+e license when a car with a towing capacity of 2ton is towing a 3.5t mam trailer yes but with regards only having a b license the law says plated mam
 

Y Fan Wen

Member
Location
N W Snowdonia
Because you imply there's age limits - which suggests what you're allowed to do changed as you get older (driving age limit, drinking age limit, voting age limit...). There is not. There is a cut off date when the licences changed
It also changes at age 70 I think. Must admit no matter how often we discuss this subject here, I'm never any the wiser in the end.
What I did do before I got to 70 was get an 8x5 750kg trailer to use with y fan wen (4500) in the hope that the little one could use the outfit legally. He has no B+E.
 

Highland Mule

Member
Livestock Farmer
It also changes at age 70 I think. Must admit no matter how often we discuss this subject here, I'm never any the wiser in the end.
What I did do before I got to 70 was get an 8x5 750kg trailer to use with y fan wen (4500) in the hope that the little one could use the outfit legally. He has no B+E.

Best thing is to check your driving licence and then look up the law. With everything back to the raw legislation available online, there's no excuse these days.
 

JohnBoy

Member
Ehhh guys.

Remember the bit about this being in Ireland, not the UK.

The laws are pretty similar, probably close to identical, but they are not the motor vehicle regulations 1999 nor the construction and use regulations 1986.


@Cowabunga Irish legislation tends to be lazily written. the leaflet mentioned above by TW45 is here: https://www.rsa.ie/Documents/Vehicl...ht Trailers A5 booklet Amends 9-12-15 .pdf

Scroll down to page 13.

The law says that for a category B driver you can tow MAM of car plus MAM of trailer up to a combined MAM of 3500KG. Reads pretty much identical to the UK regulations in this case.
 

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