Citation and commencement

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Goods Vehicles (Plating and Testing) (Amendment) (No.1) Regulations 1991 and shall come into force on 18th March 1991.

Introduction

2. the Goods Vehicles (Plating and Testing) Regulations 1988(2) shall be further amended in accordance with the provisions of these Regulations.

Amendment to regulation 3 (interpretation)

3. In regulation 3(1) before the expression "examination" and the meaning assigned to it there shall be inserted the following:

• ""design gross weight" means-

  (a)

  in the case of a vehicle equipped with a Ministry plate, the weight shown thereon as the design weight or, if no weight is so shown thereon, the weight shown thereon as the weight not to be exceeded in Great Britain;

  (b)

  in the case of a vehicle which is not equipped aith a Ministry plate, but which is equipped with a plate in accordance with regulation 66 of the Construction and Use Regulations, the maximum gross weight shown on the plate in respect of item 7 of Part I of Schedule 8 to those Regulations; and

  (c)

  in any other case, the weight which the vehicle is designed or adapted not to exceed when in normal use and travelling on a road laden;".

Amendment to regulation 4 (application)

4. In regulation 4(1), for subparagraph (c) there shall be substituted the following:

"(c)other motor cars, the design gross weight of which exceeds 3500 kilograms;".

Amendments to regulation 8 (conditions of acceptance of vehicle)

5. In regulation 8(2),-

(a)in sub-paragraph (h), for "of any directions" there shall be submitted "with any directions"; and

(b)the word "or" immediately following sub-paragraph (m) shall be omitted and after sub-paragraph (n) there shall be added-

• "or;

  (o)

  on the submission of the vehicle foe a periodical test or a re-test following a periodical test, the Ministry plate issued in respect of the vehicle-

  (i)

  is not affixed in accordance with regulation 70(1) of the Construction and Use Regulations; or

  (ii)

  contains particulars which do not correspond to the vehicle to which it is affixed.".

Amendment to regulation 16 (fees for re-tests)

6. In regulation 16(3)(c)(i), "20," shall be omitted.

Amendment to regulation 35 (condition of acceptance of vehicles)

7. In regulation 35 for "derogate regulation 8" there shall be substituted "derogate from regulation 8".

Amendments to Schedule 2 (Classes of vehicles to which the regulations do not apply)

8. In Schedule 2-

(a)for paragraph 13 there shall be substituted-

"13. Living vans the design hgross weight of which does not exceed 3500 kilograms."; and

(b)after paragraph 18, there shall be inserted-

"18A. Converter dollies used solely for the purposes of agriculture, horticulture and forestry, or for any one or two of those purposes";

Amenmdments to Schedule 3 (the prescribed contruction and use regulations)

9. In paragraph 1 of Schedule 3-

(a)in Item 11 "and 36" shall be omitted; and

(b)Items 17 and 20 shall be omitted.

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend the Goods Vehicles (Plating and Testing) Regulations 1988 ("the 1988 Regulations") as follows.

1. The weight threshold (set by regulation 4(1)(c) of the 1988 Regulations) is changed from unladen weight of 1525 kilograms to design gross weight (as defined in regulation 3 of these Regulations) of 3500 Kilograms. The exemption for living vans is accordingly amended.

2. Examiners are not to be under an obligation to accept a vehicle for a periodical test, or for a re-test following a periodical test, or to proceed with such a test if the Ministry plate (issued by the Secretary of State following the issue or amendment of a plating certificate) is not affixed to the vehicle in accordance with the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 (S.I. 1986/1078) ("the Construction and Use Regulations") or contains particulars which do not correspond to the vehicle to which it is affixed. As a consequence of this new condition of acceptance the Ministry plate has been omitted from the construction and use requirements which are prescribed for the purposes of a goods vehicle test ("the prescribed construction and use requirements").

3. The excess fuel device (regulation 61 of the Construction and Use Regulations) and the maintenance of speedometers (regulations 36 of those Regulations) have been omitted from the prescribed construction and use requirements.

4. Converter dollies used for agriculture, horticulture or foretry are exempted from the 1988 Regulations.

5. There are other minor and consequential amendments.