Driving licence over 3.5T

[Hughman]

Dear All,

I've not posted for ages although I keep lurking and reading.

Anyway, I need advice urgently. We have a Possl Roadcruiser which I drive as I've had a licence for 45 years or so. I upgraded it a few years back to 4.25T so that we at least had a legal payload capacity, but as my wife took her test much later, she needs to redo it for a heavier vehicle. The horrible reason for this is that I've been diagnosed with incurable cancer (bowel, liver, lungs, so far) and she will need to be able to use the van when I'm gone.

I've tried to find out what needs to be done from the DVLA website, but it all seems to be about getting full-blown coach or lorry licences.

I'm hoping someone may be able to point me at the right bit of the site to get started. I think she needs to get licence upgraded to give her provisional entitlement to drive a bigger vehicle, but no idea if she then has to have lessons, or use L plates with me sitting with her, what tests she needs to do etc etc etc.

All advice very gratefully received - thanks.

 

[Lenny HB]

Sorry to here about your problems.
She will need to do a driving course and test for her C1 licence unfortunaly she will probably have to do it in a small truck. Expect it to cost around £800.

I have a friend who was impressed by Hills of Plumpton which is not too far from London.

Edit:
Looks like at Hills you can do it in a 5.5t Iveco panel van, they may even let you do it in your own vehicle.

 

[Hughman]

Thanks Lenny - I'll check them out.

 

[DBK]

Very sorry to hear your news but downplating back to the original 3.5t might be more practical. At over 3.5t she will need regular medical checks once over 70 to keep the C1 which may just be one thing too many for her once on her own.
From memory downplating just needs a weight certificate from a weighbridge then ask DVLC to revise the vehicle classification.

 

[addoaddo]

Your will also need to do the HGV theory test which is close to pointless but at least you will learn what colours the air lines are on an artic

Most training schools will allow you to use your own vehicle, search for HGV or ambulance training.

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[sweetie]

@Hughman my heart sunk when I read your post. Sorry to here your problems. Hope your wife is successful with obtaining her C1 upgraded licence.

Steve

 

[Wellington]

I’m so very sorry to hear about your health. I too have no c1 licence and am thinking about upgrading, and couldn’t make head nor tail of the dvla stuff. I’d be interested to hear other people have found upgrading.

 

[Hughman]

I've thought about downplating, but it'll give a very small payload. I didn't really realise when we got the van originally, but adding awning, solar panel and satellite + TV, together with the Busbiker for 2 electric bikes, took a great chunk out of payload before we started. I might try getting weighed without bike rack and some of the stuff we normally carry, and see what that gives as a payload - could be ok for one (small) woman and dog.

Longer term, I reckon Mrs Hughman would be better downsizing altogether. She wants to carry on motorhoming and may well end up based in Slovakia (her home country, where we have a house in a village near Bratislava), but she'll want to spend a fair bit of time here as well. I'm thinking of maybe a VW poptop kind of option - less aggro with car parks and stuff generally.

Trouble is, all our money really is in our house, so she'll have to sell up here to get it. A minefield of options and possibilities, and very tricky to decide anything yet, at least until we know really how long I've got. I'd like to leave her with as little of all this stuff to do as possible when I do go though, as dealing with that will be hard enough on its own.

Life eh!!

 

[Minxy]

Oh hell, what an awful situation ... I can even begin to think about how you must both be feeling with a diagnosis like that!

Okay, back to practicalities, this is what I suggest:

Check the weight of the camper empty, or if that's not possible, just put in what is likely to be needed by one person, leave the electric bikes off but the busbiker on as no point in taking it off at present. This will give you an idea of what payload is actually left and you can simply deduct the weight of the busbiker to get the rear axle weight and overall weight.

I suspect from what you're saying, that you are unlikely to be using the camper much especially if you choose to have some palliative treatment which may restrict when you can get away. If this is the case it might be better simply to sell it so that your wife doesn't have to 'deal' with it in the future as I suspect, as you've mentioned, that she may want something smaller anyway and this will then negate the need to worry about getting her C1. If you still want something for her, then you can have some input into what she gets which would be more suitable, so she's then not making the decision alone.

It may also be better for her to get a MH abroad as they are likely to be cheaper and LHD if she'd be happier with that, especially if she plans on spending a lot of time there.

As for selling your home - you don't need that sort of hassle/stress on top of what you have at the moment so just leave that for now.

 

[Riverbankannie]

So sorry to read of your prognosis and situation.
Wishing you and your wife all the best in sorting things out.

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[Hughman]

Pretty much sums up what I've been thinking Minxy, except we will use the van here at least for as long as possible. Taking the actual bike carrier off is actually quite easy with a big enough hammer ;-). We only have it on for our long summer trips.

She'll certainly want lhd in future and I'm planning to have a word with Duemo where we got the current van about possibilities.

Thanks for good wishes.