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coming back from town the other day i saw an older caravan leaning to the offside whilst being towed, and i got thinking,,,,, should caravans and trailers be subject to an annual mot.

whats your thought on this.

for the record i think we should for vans/trailers over 3 yrs old. like cars. 

I tend to agree with the majority here - don't think it is really necessary.  If you have your van serviced regularly the van is checked anyway. 

Putting to one side the financial arguments (what it would cost us) and consider just the principle of MOT for caravans.........

Due to the requirements of the European Type Approval scheme “home made” cars/ trailers etc will all need to be approved by VOSA and this is being implemented up to 2014.  Type Approval is not that far removed from the principles of the MOT. So it would not be that far a leap to require caravans to have a regular MOT.

Caravans have the CRIS registration which gives it a unique number against which the MOT could be registered. Police would have access to that database.

The driver is responsible for ensuring that his vehicle is in good order to be on a highway and that “vehicle” includes the caravan attached at the back. Thus the driver has to ensure that caravan is roadworthy. Again that suggests that an MOT could be a useful tool for the driver.

The MOT was introduced because of the number of accidents caused by unroadworthy cars.  Whilst there have been a limited number of accidents caused by caravans, lets be fair, that is probably more due bad driving/loading by their owners. In the event that there is an increase in the number of unroadworthy caravans found on the road, or accidents caused due to their condition, then I can see a move towards their MOT.

There is a great degree of logic to the idea

Problem is that if the powers that be read a thread like this and see that the concept has support then before we know it.......

Phil

Quote: Originally posted by cwdc56768 on 27/6/2011

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Type Approval is not that far removed from the principles of the MOT. So it would not be that far a leap to require caravans to have a regular MOT.

 

Phil

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Not sure I can see where you are coming from with that, Phil -  "Type Approval is not that far removed from the principles of the MOT."   Isn't 'Type Approval' more to do with the specification/approval of an item as to it's suitability/function rather than the 'condition' at a moment in time.  An item may be 'Type Approved' but may not necessarily be in good condition after a time.  In which case I would see the principle of 'type approval' and MOT as being completely different.  Have I misunderstood this?

Best wishes

Type approval includes for its roadworthiness and that is what an MOT is about. One poster, above, commented that MOTs would take "home mades" off the road. Well that is what "Type approval" can do. If they can introduce legislation which requires vehicles to conform to something then the same principle applies to an MOT. Legislation would be required to make caravans liable to an MOT and the legislative process requires a certain degree of logic...continuity of thought..Tradition, etc. The principle that man made boxes travelling along the road should be subject to regulation is well established. Hence I say that it is not that far removed in terms of the legislative process.

The building blocks are already in place

Phil

Quote: Originally posted by LegsDownKettleOn on 27/6/2011

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The one thing that makes it harder to police than MoTs on cars is that the car has it's own unique number plate. The police can check on this easily without the need to stop the motorist and can even be checked automatically with ANPR cameras. Whilst the police may well need to have regular eye tests, I doubt there are many who could read the CRiS number from a caravan window whilst driving. You could arguably then say that caravans need to be registered individually from the car and carry their own regestration number but that then starts a whole new argument. Inevitably to cover the cost of setting the scheme up trailers will all have to pay road tax and be insured separately. As for what happens if you get flashed by a speed camera if the car and caravan are registered in different names is any ones guess.

The other concern is who is going to do the MoT? Most MoT stations would not have the facilities to lift a caravan never mind the experience to know how it works.

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hate to dissapoint people but road tax hasn't existed since 1937. its Vehicle Excise Duty (VED ) its also not ringfenced for the construction or maintenance of roads. thats taken from the general taxation pot i.e council tax income tax vAT fuel duty etc etc etc.

as for the speed fine from cameras, well i have never found a towed caravan that can exceed the speed limit without being attached to a car. well except maybe over a cliff if you watch blastlab ;) so its fairly simple to administer. its the driver of the car and under the currrent system the registered keeper gets the NIP and has to provide details of the driver if it wasn't them.

would i want a test for the trailer i have- Yes as it means it has been checked proffesionally .

a good money saving tip is to use the local authority test station for car MOTs they don't do repair work so won't rip you off for unneccesary work

agree with mike, before every trip the tyres on my van are checked and rechecked, oily bits oiled, greasy bits greased and dry bits cleaned. in effect a fitness to run, now in 4 years my van has done under 1500 miles, I drive that solo in 2 months

nothing to do with older vans as a lot of us treat the van as a hobby and know every part intimately wheras you get the owners of new vans that know nowt about vanning hitching on and going without basic checks