With only a B driving license you can pull a lot more than you think | Car

With a B driving license you are actually only allowed to tow relatively small trailers. To start with, it concerns trailers without their own registration number, so on which you put a white number plate with the registration number of the car. The total weight of the trailer (including maximum permitted load) may not exceed 750 kilograms. The weight and maximum payload on the trailer is often stated on a plate on the chassis.

You may also tow trailers with their own license plate – they have a maximum permitted mass of more than 750 kilograms – in some cases with a B driving license. Then it’s time to calculate. The trailer and the car may not weigh more than 3,500 kilograms together with the maximum permitted load. Suppose you drive a car (with an empty weight of, for example, 1,500 kilos) that may weigh no more than 2,000 kilos with a load, then the trailer may not weigh more than 1,500 kilos with a maximum load.

So you add up the maximum mass of both and that must remain below 3,500 kilos. Even if you stay under these weights in practice, the police look at the maximum permitted mass of both vehicles. With a lighter car you therefore seem to be able to pull a larger trailer in this case, but bear in mind that lighter cars are often allowed to tow less.

For heavier combinations you do not immediately need a BE driver’s license. After all, there has also been a B+ driving license, or B with ‘code 96’, for several years now. For this you have to take a less demanding test, which is usually cheaper as a result. With a B+ driving license you can drive a slightly heavier combination than with B: 4250 kilos. Again, the towing vehicle and trailer together may not have a maximum authorized mass above that. There are no special requirements for which trailer you can tow.