- Sep 23, 2013
- 2,585
- 8,805
- Funster No
- 28,231
- MH
- Globecar Campscout
- Exp
- Since 2008 (started in a VW T4 campervan)
Unladen weight is a difficult one, but if there was a move for clarification, I'd place a bet that more vehicles would end up in the lower speed category.
It's almost impossible to determine for yourself with a motorhome. Firstly, it's difficult to get to & from the weighbridge with no fuel on board & a right pain if you plan to drain it down while there!
Secondly, the rest of .Gov.uk's advice is very woolly.
I normally use fuel, some fresh water, tea & coffee, bedding (including the manufacturer's supplied mattress) & an oven. Now as fuel is excluded, can I exclude all the other items? Water, tea & coffee, yes, certainly. Bedding - almost certainly, but the mattress was probably included in the manufacturer's unladen weight figure - otherwise the mattress is part of their declared payload figure. The oven is an optional extra, but is a permanent fixture. Does this make it part of the unladen weight for speed limit purposes? But I never use the oven 'when it's on the road', so does that count?
If the manufacturer declares an unladen weight in their brochure that is over 3.05 tonnes, then you are probably stuffed. If they declare a weight less than that, but your vehicle has anything additional permanently bolted to it that weighs more than the margin you started with, you may be in theoretical trouble. But now consider the enforcement difficulties. If the vehicle is declared as under 3.05 tonnes by the manufacturers, then it's going to be very difficult to return the vehicle to a true unladen condition to measure it again.
If taken to a weighbridge, I'd remove anything I could without using a spanner, even if it arrived from the manufacturer with it in. All my bedding & bed bases are removable!
It's almost impossible to determine for yourself with a motorhome. Firstly, it's difficult to get to & from the weighbridge with no fuel on board & a right pain if you plan to drain it down while there!
Secondly, the rest of .Gov.uk's advice is very woolly.
You need definitions for 'goods', 'other items', 'parts normally used' & 'when it's on the road'.The unladen weight of any vehicle is the weight of the vehicle when it’s not carrying any passengers, goods or other items.
It includes the body and all parts normally used with the vehicle or trailer when it’s used on a road.
I normally use fuel, some fresh water, tea & coffee, bedding (including the manufacturer's supplied mattress) & an oven. Now as fuel is excluded, can I exclude all the other items? Water, tea & coffee, yes, certainly. Bedding - almost certainly, but the mattress was probably included in the manufacturer's unladen weight figure - otherwise the mattress is part of their declared payload figure. The oven is an optional extra, but is a permanent fixture. Does this make it part of the unladen weight for speed limit purposes? But I never use the oven 'when it's on the road', so does that count?
If the manufacturer declares an unladen weight in their brochure that is over 3.05 tonnes, then you are probably stuffed. If they declare a weight less than that, but your vehicle has anything additional permanently bolted to it that weighs more than the margin you started with, you may be in theoretical trouble. But now consider the enforcement difficulties. If the vehicle is declared as under 3.05 tonnes by the manufacturers, then it's going to be very difficult to return the vehicle to a true unladen condition to measure it again.
If taken to a weighbridge, I'd remove anything I could without using a spanner, even if it arrived from the manufacturer with it in. All my bedding & bed bases are removable!