Towing is the part of UK vehicle law that changed recently, quietly, and in a direction most people still get wrong. Plenty of advice online was written before December 2021 and is now simply false. At the same time, the thing buyers most want to check, a used trailer or caravan, turns out to be the one item on the road carrying no test record at all. This guide sets out what is actually required in 2026 for cars, vans, motorcycles and lorries that tow, what the MOT does and does not look at, and where the checkable evidence really sits.
The old position: if your car licence was issued on or after 1 January 1997, category B alone let you tow a trailer of up to 750kg maximum authorised mass, or a heavier one only if the whole combination stayed within 3,500kg. Anything beyond that needed a separate category B+E test.
That changed in December 2021. The car and trailer test was withdrawn in Great Britain and category B holders were given the towing entitlement automatically. A category B licence now allows a trailer of up to 3,500kg maximum authorised mass, subject to the towing vehicle's own limits. You do not book a test, apply, or pay anything. DVSA no longer runs the test, so there is nothing to book even if you wanted it on paper.
Three things people get wrong about this:
Losing the test also removed the only formal competence check in the system. Voluntary accredited training is a sensible few hundred pounds if you have never reversed an outfit, but it is optional and it puts nothing on your licence.
This is the table that settles most arguments. Note how much of it says nothing is required.
| What you are towing or driving | Periodic test required | Who tests it |
|---|---|---|
| Trailer or caravan up to 3,500kg gross weight | None. No MOT, no annual test, ever | Nobody |
| Trailer over 3,500kg gross weight | DVSA annual test, and the trailer must be plated | DVSA or an authorised testing facility |
| Car or van up to 3,000kg design gross weight, towbar fitted | Class 4 MOT, towbar included in the inspection | MOT station |
| Van 3,000kg to 3,500kg design gross weight | Class 7 MOT, towbar included | MOT station |
| Goods vehicle over 3,500kg | DVSA annual test | DVSA or an authorised testing facility |
| Motorcycle pulling a trailer | Class 1 or class 2 MOT on the bike | MOT station |
A trailer over 3,500kg must have its first annual test before the end of the month one year after it was first sold or supplied, then once a year after that, and it is issued with a ministry plate showing its weights. The fees, the retest window and the 3,500kg boundary itself are covered in our guide to lorry and trailer annual tests and the 3,500kg line.
Everything below that line, which is the overwhelming majority of caravans, box trailers, plant trailers and boat trailers on British roads, is tested by nobody at any point in its life. The Construction and Use regulations still apply, so brakes, lights, tyres and coupling must be in working order and DVSA can stop you for them. There is simply no annual appointment that proves it.
This is the practical consequence for anyone buying used, and it is rarely spelled out. A car with a ten year history gives you a mileage trail, advisories, a failure record and dates you can cross reference. A trailer gives you none of that, because no test was ever recorded against it. There is no database to query and no free checker, ours included, that can produce a trailer's past.
So the checkable evidence sits entirely on the vehicle side. Run the registration through the free MOT history checker and look for the things that matter to a vehicle that has worked:
For the trailer itself you are back to physical inspection. Check the chassis number against the paperwork, read the plate for gross and nose weight, look for weld repairs on the A frame, and read the four digit date code moulded into each tyre. A code of 2718 means week 27 of 2018.
On tyre age, be careful what you read elsewhere. The ban on tyres over ten years old, in force since 1 February 2021, applies to the front steered axles of heavy goods vehicles, buses and coaches, and to all single wheels on minibuses. It sets no legal age limit for a caravan or light trailer tyre. It did require the date code to be legible on heavy vehicles and trailers over 3.5 tonnes. For a caravan, age is a maintenance judgement, not a legal test, and those tyres usually fail from standing rather than from tread wear.
The towbar is not ignored. Under the MOT inspection manual the tester examines the coupling for security, condition and excessive corrosion, on cars, vans and light commercials alike. Tow ball covers are removed so the ball can be seen, and couplings hidden behind bumper panels are inspected if the panel moves without tools. Fifth wheel couplings are included. Towing eyes, the recovery points, are not tested.
The electrical side splits in two, and this catches people out:
So a car can pass its MOT with a 7 pin socket that does not actually light the trailer. Test it yourself with a board or with the trailer connected before you rely on it.
One more common question: fitting a towbar does not invalidate your MOT and does not require a new one. The towbar becomes part of the inspection at the next test, that is all.
This is separate from testing, and it is the one piece of paperwork owners genuinely do need to think about. To drive to or through most European countries you must register the trailer with DVLA and display its own number plate.
Published fees are £26 to register a trailer for the first time, £21 for a certificate to a new registered keeper, and £10 to replace a lost or damaged one. DVLA posts the certificate and authorises a plate. A handful of countries sit outside the scheme, so check the current DfT list for your route.
Three numbers decide whether you are legal, and none is on your licence. The trailer's plate gives its maximum gross weight. The towing vehicle's plate and V5C give the maximum towing mass and the gross train weight, which is the whole outfit loaded. Nose weight, the download on the ball, is limited by both towbar and vehicle, and the lower figure wins.
Speed limits for a car or light vehicle towing any trailer, set by the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 rather than by the size of what you are pulling:
| Road type | Towing limit | Normal car limit |
|---|---|---|
| Built up area | 30 mph | 30 mph |
| Single carriageway | 50 mph | 60 mph |
| Dual carriageway | 60 mph | 70 mph |
| Motorway | 60 mph | 70 mph |
On a motorway with three or more lanes you must not use the outside lane while towing, unless signs or a lane closure direct you otherwise. The same restriction applies on a three lane dual carriageway when towing a caravan.
If you tow a caravan or a trailer under 3,500kg behind a car or a van, the honest answer is that you need to do almost nothing. No test to book, no certificate to renew, no licence course to pass, and no registration unless you are leaving the country. Any service selling a trailer test certificate or a trailer history report in that weight class is selling something that does not exist.
Spend the money you saved on paperwork where it matters: tyres, which age out long before they wear out on a trailer that stands for eight months a year, and brakes, which on an overrun coupling are the most neglected item in the outfit.
And when you are buying, remember where the evidence is. The trailer will tell you nothing about its past. The vehicle in front of it will tell you a great deal, free, in about ten seconds.
How to read a van MOT history before you buy: the mileage trail, the advisories that actually matter on a working van, the gaps sellers never mention, and what a free check cannot tell you.
The legal maximum MOT fee is 54.85 pounds for a car and 29.65 for a motorcycle, unchanged since 2010. What garages really charge, the free retest rules, and five ways to pay less.
Seven charging zones in England plus London ULEZ. Only three charge private cars. The full table, the Euro standards that decide it, and why Scotland works completely differently.
A write-off is an insurance decision, not a mechanical verdict. What each category means, which can never be driven again, what it does to value and insurance, and how to find out.
When a van stops getting an ordinary MOT and starts getting a DVSA annual test, the 2026 fees for lorries and trailers, the electric van exception that runs to 4,250kg, and the 14 day retest window that is worth real money.
Lamps cause 41% of motorcycle MOT defects but tyres cause 34% of the dangerous ones. The official DVSA figures, the tread rule that is different on a bike, the four things an MOT never inspects, and how to read a used bike's history.
Cars, vans and motorcycles over 40 years old can stop having an MOT, but it is a declaration you make, not a status you are granted. The 40 year rule, what counts as a substantial change after the May 2026 guidance update, why the road tax date is different, and what an exempt vehicle does to its own MOT history.
Most bikes are laid up over winter, so a motorcycle MOT history is full of holes that mean nothing. Which gaps are normal, which one should stop you, why low mileage is not automatically good, and how to read the trail. Free checks for cars, vans, motorcycles and lorries.
An MOT advisory is not a fail and has no legal deadline. What the common advisories mean on a car, van or bike, roughly what each costs to put right in 2026, and how to read the pattern before you buy.
The first MOT is due three years from first registration in Great Britain, four in Northern Ireland, one year for taxis and lorries. Fees, the one month early rule, the £1,000 fine, what fails at three years, and how to buy a car that has no MOT history yet.
An imported car, van or motorcycle has no UK MOT history before its DVLA registration, and its readings may be in kilometres. The 14 day NOVA rule, the £55 registration fee, the £199 IVA test, the 10 year exemption, the write-off trap, and how to read an import's record without being fooled.
What a DVSA or police roadside stop covers for a van, the fixed penalties and prohibitions from GOV.UK, the 2024 to 2025 prosecution figures, and how a cleared prohibition shows up in the MOT history of a car, van or lorry before you buy.
What the MOT emissions test does to a diesel car or van, the smoke limits by age, the DPF removal fines, 2026 repair costs from £85 to £3,500, and how to spot DPF trouble in the free MOT history before you buy.
What the DVSA motorcycle manual actually says about aftermarket exhausts, NOT FOR ROAD USE cans, LED headlamp bulbs, tail tidy indicators and number plates, what the roadside law says instead, and how a modified bike shows up in the MOT record. Free MOT history checks for cars, vans, motorcycles and lorries.
Brakes are the most common dangerous MOT fail on UK cars and vans. What each brake defect line means, what it costs to put right in 2026, and how to read it in a used vehicle's MOT history.
Suspension is the biggest single MOT defect group on UK cars and vans. What each suspension fail line means, what a spring, shock absorber, bush or ball joint costs to put right in 2026, and how to read suspension advisories in a used van's MOT history.
Tyres are 6 in 10 of every Dangerous MOT defect on UK cars and vans. What the tester checks, the 1.6mm rule, 2026 tyre prices, the free next-day retest, and how to read tyre lines in a used car's MOT record.
Lamps are 24.89 percent of every MOT defect on UK cars and vans, the biggest category of all. What each lamp defect line means, what a bulb or a headlamp aim fix costs in 2026, why the retest is free for bulbs but not for aim, and how to read lamp lines in a used vehicle's MOT history.
Bikes fail 13.40 percent of MOTs against 27.51 percent for cars and vans. What actually fails a motorcycle, what each repair costs in 2026, and the GOV.UK retest rule that gives cars a free tyre retest but not motorcycles. Free MOT history checks for cars, vans, motorcycles and lorries.
Roughly one in four cars fails its first MOT attempt. Here is what really causes it, using DVSA data, and what each repair usually costs.
Mileage fraud is legal to commit and illegal to profit from. The MOT history is the cheapest way to catch it. Here is exactly what to look for.
The three year rule, the one month early rule, the £1,000 fine, and the handful of exemptions that actually apply. Sourced from GOV.UK.
The four MOT result categories, which ones fail you, which one means you must not drive the car at all, and how to read a defect list.
Official DVSA MOT testing figures for Great Britain, laid out plainly. Test volumes, initial failure rates by class and by vehicle age, and the defect categories behind the failures.
Something wrong or out of date? Email support@jagatitlimited.com and a person will read it.
MOT Check UK is a trading name of Jagat IT UK Ltd, registered in England and Wales, company number 17474995. Registered office: 164 High Street, London Colney, St Albans, Hertfordshire, AL2 1QF.