Towing & Horse Trailer

[judybos]

Could any one help , I would like to bring my horse trailer over from England ,do the same rules apply for axle weight for towing in France, also I have been told the trailer( Rice Continental Lightweight) would have to be re-registered ,is this a very complicated procedure ? are there any other problems I might come across ? ( Husband groaning - have to buy vehicle to pull it) but I think it would be extremely useful not just for horse, renovation work as well ,and trailers are expensive in france.

[Motorhead]

If you keep you UK driving licence you will have no problems towing it, however a standard French licence needs a separate category for towing a trailer over 750kg gvw ( which it will be ) and you should bear this in mind if you are considering changing licences.

If you are insuring it in France it will need a separate policy as it is over 500kg gvw.

Also as it is over 750kg gvw it will need a separate reg doc/carte grise to be registered in France. Doing this is quite straight forward as long as it is young enough to have pan european homolgation or the manufacturer/French importer is reasonably helpful, otherwise expect problems.

[PaysBasque]

You will need a Certificat de Conformité from the manufacturer of the trailer, so the best course of action will be to contact Rice and ask them if they can provide it or if they have a French subsidiary that can. If you can't get a certificat then you will have to go through the French system, called Service des Mines, in order to have it registered. This is a very lengthy affair and not guaranteed to be crowned by success, so in that case I would change my trailer to a different make, like Ifor Williams, or even better buy a Fautras in France.

As for the driving licence, you will not need to change your licence, unless you get points in France. If you do change your licence they will just transfer everything that is on your English licence to the new French one. There is no problem with the towing permit if you already have it on you current licence, and even the lorry permit will be transferred if you are willing to undergo a medical.

The towing capacity of cars is the same as everywhere else. I currently tow an Ifor Williams Hunter Deluxe with a Renault Espace, which is permitted for up to 2 tonnes of breaked weight. However, I am just about to go back to a 4x4 as the Renault struggles when I've got two horses on and it is costing me a fortune in tyres every year.

I hope all this helps, but let me know if you need more info.

[judybos]

[quote]If you keep you UK driving licence you will have no problems towing it, however a standard French licence needs a separate category for towing a trailer over 750kg gvw ( which it will be ) and you sho...[/quote]

Thanks for info, will keep my new british licence, the trailer is 750kg and only 7yrs old but in good condition ( what is pan european homolgation ? ) sounds painful ! will get it insured .  Thanks again.

[judybos]

[quote]You will need a Certificat de Conformité from the manufacturer of the trailer, so the best course of action will be to contact Rice and ask them if they can provide it or if they have a French subsidi...[/quote]

Thanks for info, I have all the papers on the trailer it is only 7yrs old and in good nick, I think Rice have been taken over by Richardson Trailers , its weight is 750kg and is marked on tow bar end with all relevant information, the front unload door is on the left ,which is opposite to the Ifor Williams, which I could never understand as you unload on to centre of road ( in emergency) in this country which seems wrong to me, although I would be in same position over in France !

[Motorhead]

Pan european homologation - after either 1996 or 1998 all vehicles legally sold new (apart from specials under single type approval) in one EC country are automatically OK for all other EC countries. However. not all DRIRE (what the servis des mines are called now) fonctionaires know this. There may also be a problem with the interpretation as to whether a trailer is a 'vehicle' it certainly is so in France but the position in UK is a bit ambiguous.

Is the 750kg shown on the plate the actual weight of the trailer or the gvw ie. the max permitted weight of the trailer + load? If it's the latter (which seems a bit light to me for a horsebox but I could be wrong) then you won't have to register it at all and you can use the same plates as the towing vehicle but will have to get separate insurance if it's a French policy. If the gvw is over 750kg you will have to register it separately at some point and with the position of the exit I can see problems and I wouldn't think it was worth the bother.

I think you are right to keep a UK licence if you are going to tow big trailers. It is not my experience that the category for this is automatically carried over when you exchange licences but then interpretations vary from prefecture to prefecture.

[Dave&Olive]

hi

        you can also get a single vehicle approval from the maker , just got one for mine beit an indespenion trailor and am now £50 lighter.

           ps if you are towing it behind a uk reg vehicle you do not need anything except you uk lincence that is . but you prob new that anyway

              dave

[Motorhead]

What on earth are you on about Dave. Single vehicle type approval or reception de tire isolee as it's known in France can only come from the respective government. Manufacturers can't approve anything they can only submit their vehicles/components for approval.

[Chuck&Betty]

Hi -

If it's any help - we are going through the process of registering an Ifor Williams HB510 which is 5yrs old in August. 

To get your letter of conformity you MUST have the ORIGINAL bill of sale from the dealer/manuafacturer when the trailer was newly purchased plus originals of EVERY bill of sale for each time the trailer has changed hands..(and each one of these must show the serial number of the trailer.)  We purchased this Ifor Williams in the Uk having sold our old Bayhill trailer for which we knew there would not be the appropriate paperwork..

Gook Luck!!