transporting classic cars

[davetaylor]

I have just had a strange conversation with a number of local garages concerning the transportation of my traveller. I was told by three garages that a new ruling has meant that garages can only recover vehicles that have broken down. In a nut shell if your vehicle has no MOT or tax then it can only be moved by companies with an insurance policy to cover them. Your everday garage no longer has this cover . If you are thinking of moving your car beware and check out the insurance.

[bmcecosse]

If the car's wheels are on the road - then yes - it must be insured. If on a trailer or truck - can't see a problem!

[Peetee]

I can recommend an online broker for transporting vehicles. www.shipley.com.
You fill in your details and recovery or transport companies vie for your business. When you accept an offer (take your time - the price will drop and drop as they out bid each other) you can look at the company feedback and check they are not hamfisted gorillas. I was very pleased with my choice and my Traveller (with a very weak chassis leg) was delivered safe and sound.

[ASL642]

I think I'm right (hope so!) - if the vehicle is to be towed via an "A" frame attached to the tow bar of your car, then yes the vehicle will require an MOT and insurance. If the vehicle is to be loaded onto the back of a trailer then it doen't require an MOT.

[LouiseM]

I have just had a strange conversation with a number of local garages concerning the transportation of my traveller. I was told by three garages that a new ruling has meant that garages can only recover vehicles that have broken down.

A vehicle used for recovery purposes only (the movement of a 'disabled' vehicle to a place of safety) is exempt from an operators licence, use of a tachograph and is entitled to reduced road tax. Therefore if a garage uses a recovery vehicle to transport a vehicle that has not broken down or been involved in an accident it invalidates the insurance and the recovery vehicle can be impounded for operating illegally. So basically if you need a vehicle transporting you need to use a transport company rather than a recovery company.

[12Banger]

I can recommend an online broker for transporting vehicles. http://www.shipley.com.
You fill in your details and recovery or transport companies vie for your business. When you accept an offer (take your time - the price will drop and drop as they out bid each other) you can look at the company feedback and check they are not hamfisted gorillas. I was very pleased with my choice and my Traveller (with a very weak chassis leg) was delivered safe and sound.

http://www.shiply.com

Can be great, can be a disaster. Cheapness quite often inversely proportional to wait-time and turning up when they say they will. Well worth a try though. I paid £45 to have my car transported 25 miles, had to wait 14 days, and endure 3 "not showing up when agreed" wasted days, but then look what turned up!




overkill but did the job.

[Kevin]

Can be great, can be a disaster. Cheapness quite often inversely proportional to wait-time and turning up when they say they will. Well worth a try though. I paid £45 to have my car transported 25 miles, had to wait 14 days, and endure 3 "not showing up when agreed" wasted days, but then look what turned up!
overkill but did the job.

They would have been more punctual if it had been a Moggie I expect

[rayofleamington]

I think I'm right (hope so!) - if the vehicle is to be towed via an "A" frame attached to the tow bar of your car, then yes the vehicle will require an MOT and insurance. If the vehicle is to be loaded onto the back of a trailer then it doen't require an MOT.

The towed vehicle will need to be taxed unless you can prove it is no longer capable of being used as a vehicle (e.g. you cut it in half and made it into a trailer). Basically any vehicle where the wheels touch the road needs to be taxed - even if half of it is off the road on a Dolly (Info I got from DVLA, from someone who had been involved in court cases for this exact isue)

A vehicle towed by an a-frame doesn't have to have MOT as you are using it as a trailer - however it needs to be "safe" and have a trailer board to show the signals and reg number of the tow vehicle. As soon as it stops being a trailer (e.g. if you unhook the hitch or remove the trailer board) it becomes a vehicle and needs to be insured even just to be parked or pushed along the road.

Using a good quality auto trailer and a tow vehicle within it's trailer towing limits is about the best legal way to shift a car otherwise you need someone with a vehicle transporter.
Even when using a trailer, things can be complicated - the max loaded weight of tow vehicle + trailer max loaded weight will probably be over 3500kgs (even if the actual weight is under that). In this case if the driver is payed, you fall into the Tacho rules!! This is daft if the tow vehcile is not normally required to use a tacho. Using a heavy duty tow vehicle and trailer makes the job a bit safer, but this daft rule on max allowed weight (based on the vehicle and trailer plate info) shoots people in the foot.

For towing, a-framing and trailering, finding all the rules that apply is next to impossible! Also PC Joe Bloggs is unlikely to know all the rules. Fortunately/unfortunately some police authorities are keen on enforcing towing law (e.g. Warwickshire on the M40)