UK drivers passing their tests after 19 January 2013 are now subject to the Third European Union Directive on Driver Licensing, which seeks to introduce a single standard licence across all nations in
the EU. New requirements include that drivers aged over 45 must have a medical examination every five years and those under 45 must sign a self-declaration of fitness to drive.
Eamonn Brennan, the Freight Transport Association’s van information manager, however, claimed at the Van Excellence Conference that the FTA had won some concessions for UK drivers such as getting a load capacity towing limit of one tonne on category B vehicles – those below 3.5t – dropped and removing a limitation on category B vehicles being used for trade purposes.
