*&@%£*%*)&%)$&*@&$ TRAILER TEST!!

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lucemoose

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GRRRRR! Am in such a strop at the tender tantruming age of 23! I cannot afford to take this test, nor the time off work for the training therefore I cannot drive anywhere on my own and constantly have to find a body to put in the car with me- as such eating into other peoples time. YET I can merrily reverse anywhich way, do 3 point turns, negotiate any other traffic, hitch up and un hitch on my own. No one I get to sit in with me can do this, or offer advice on how to do it- so why are they my legal requirement? If I cant find a body- nothing can be done to the tune of not being able to take my horse to horspital when my parents are away- had to hire a transporter when my own trailer sits idle.
STOMP!
sorry, I feel better now.

ish

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pooryou

i am 31 and cant drive a trailer for sh*t but my 25 year old friend is an absolute wizz yet she can only drive with me in the car! WTF!!!

if you are herts i can be a useless body for you to drive with!
 
I'm in the same boat, I have a lesson booked on Friday and my Mum can't sit with me I'm thinking of borrowing a grandma from the nursing home to prop up in the passenger seat.

I have also started seeing an older man to get around this hes away Friday too though!
 
The thing thats annoying people who passed their car test before 1 January 1997 get to keep their existing entitlement to tow trailers until their licence expires.

But us people who passed after 1997 have to get lessons and pay for tests! Ahhhhh
 
It's INFURIATING!!!!!!

I missed the cut off point by 9 months
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I am actually going to ask for the lessons as my bday present from my BF this year and just get it over with. He's younger than me so can't be the spare bod lol.
 
Just wondering how much is the test?

Even more annoying.......
Took my HGV at 21 but still cant tow a trailer!
Thats annoying
 
Can i just point out to all those who are thinking of doing this test.

the details of the reversing bit are on line on how to lay it out so if you have a couple of cones kicking about you can practice in a carpark.

also any training place that says you need 4 days training even though you have towed before and are perfectly competant you should avoid as they are taking you for a ride.

try and find a local instructor who just has a small car and box trailer and take it 1 hour at a time with them until you are ready.

I'd been towing for years with a motorcycle trailer so it only took me 2 hours training before i was ready. so all in all inc test it was £190.

Just remember also that if when taking the test you need to pull forward to straighten the trailer that isnt a problem as long as you show confidence in what you are doing and arnt having to do it every 10 yards because you have no control atall!!

lastly good luck!
 
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Just remember also that if when taking the test you need to pull forward to straighten the trailer that isnt a problem as long as you show confidence in what you are doing and arnt having to do it every 10 yards because you have no control atall!!


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You can only do that twice tho before they fail you.
 
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Just remember also that if when taking the test you need to pull forward to straighten the trailer that isnt a problem as long as you show confidence in what you are doing and arnt having to do it every 10 yards because you have no control atall!!


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You can only do that twice tho before they fail you.

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fair enough but if you need to pull forward more than that then really you deserve to fail.

however there are plenty of people who think you arnt allowed to pull forward so struggle making a hash of it and failing anyway when if they new they could pull forward just a bit they'd pass happily
 
Can I ask something that may seem a stupid question, but if you passed your test after 1997, and haven't taken the trailer test, but can pull a trailer competently, are you allowed to legally pull a trailer if you have someone in the car who passed their test before 1997? (Sorry, longest question in the world!)

I didn't think that you could but from reading some of the above posts it seems that you can...I see a legal loophole that I may be able to benefit from!

Also, from speaking to a few instructors and examiners for the trailer test it seems that most people pass the actual trailer section ie. knowing your laden and unladen weights and being able to hitch and unhitch etc. What people fail on is the actual driving part - not whether you can pull a trailer as such but the mirror, signal, manouver bit. It's a whole driving test all over again, and the bad habits that people have picked up means that they can fail on this. So don't forget your 10 to 2 position!
 
If you passed your driving test after 1997 then you are allowed to tow up to a maximum weight of 3.5tonne (this includes car and trailer). This rules out horse trailers

Anything weighing above 3.5tonne and within the limits of your car you are allowed to tow with a passenger (who is legal to tow) with 'L' plates on.
You are not legally allow to tow with a horse on board, if you do you risk invaildating all your insurances should there be an accident (car, trailer and horse insurance).

I am in the process of having lessons, which are charged at £30 per hour.
The test is £105 and then you would expect to pay the hourly rate for using an instructors car.
You can use your own car, but apparently you need to check your insurance to make sure you are covered whilst in test, if anything was to happen the insurance company could find a get out clause.

Hope this all helps!
 
You are allowed to legally tow with a horse if you passed after 1997 with a qualified person in the car and L Plates, we had this checked before we took our horse anywhere
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The thing thats annoying people who passed their car test before 1 January 1997 get to keep their existing entitlement to tow trailers until their licence expires.



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'Until your licence expires'? How long do licences run for? i.e 20 years? So will I be expected to take a test in 8yrs time if I passed my test 12 yrs ago??
 
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you may be able to reverse a trailer, but the manover for the test is very tricky

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not really.

pull up so the front of the car is inline with the two cones(aim for the right of them)

stick it in reverse, full lock right as you start to edge backwards. reverse till it gets to just before it wont recover then full lock the other way. once straight you should be heading for the parking bay.

then just back it into the parking bay till your nearly in the right position. get out and see how far you need to go back. back up that amount and bingo.
 
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The thing thats annoying people who passed their car test before 1 January 1997 get to keep their existing entitlement to tow trailers until their licence expires.



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'Until your licence expires'? How long do licences run for? i.e 20 years? So will I be expected to take a test in 8yrs time if I passed my test 12 yrs ago??

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no, your licence expires when you are 70 or something like that!


for those saying you cant tow a horse with L-plates on, you definitely can - been doing it for months, DVLA said it was fine.

it cost me £650 to pass my test. I did one day's instruction with a local instructor, small car and box trailer. he said i was fine after 5hrs and would pass absolutely no probs. we spent most the time practising the reversing exercise. i could already hitch and unhitch as been practising with my own trailer. i spent £105 on the trailer test and another £160 on 4hrs of the instructor's time (45mins reversing practice, hour driving to test centre, 90mins of test and 45mins driving back) - i failed. let my nerves get to me and jack-knifed in the reversing - i knew i could pull forward to sort it out but i got so carried away watching the stupid cone, i forgot about the trailer. manbaged to then fail twice more out on the road as was so worked up about the reversing. took it again last week without any more lessons and just met instructor at test centre. another £105 and another £60 for his time while i took the test. passed with just 3 minors having controlled the nerves. didn't need to pull forwards in the reversing or get out and look as got it in box first time, but you can do this twice if need be. definitely go to any of these professional training centres that say you need a 4 day course - if you've been practising at home, you only need a few hours to make sure you get the hang of driving like a learner again - mirror, mirror, mirror, signal, mirror, mirror, manaeuveur, mirror, mirror, mirror!
 
my mates been told that its 160 a lesson and she needs 4lessons, think they are having a laugh! if anyone knows anywhere is herts that is cheaper then pls pm!
 
It is indeed more about your actual driving than your towing - when I did mine I had forgotten all the technical stuff about mirror signal manouvre etc, although I was perfectly competant at towing/driving, I would have failed on the minors that I owuld have picked up re mirror use, not being in the technically 'correct' gear at certain times etc. In terms of the actual driving, they are actuallys stricter than in your car test, as B+E is deemed a test that professional drivers/those who drive in connection with work would take. I did 3 days training with my test on the last day with a proper driving school, and passed first time, total cost £500. I then went back and did my HGV with them and passed that first time after a week of training, cost about £1100 by the time I had paid for medical etc etc.
Well worth the money though, as although things like the reverse manouvre are fairly simple once you know how, if you do it wrong it is a waste of time/money as you will fail, whereas some instruction from someone who knows how to do it properly helps no end!!

PSIt is def legal to tow with L plates and supervision and a horse on board, I checked that out too! And it isn't just the 3.5t train weight rule, that is one part of it but also the unladen weight of a trailer must be under 750kg or the MAM under 1750 if you don't have your B+E or supervision with you. That rules out people trying to stay under the 3.5t train weight by towing with light cars etc!
 
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