Category B driving licence holders can now drive 4250kg vehicles - but only if they emit zero emissions

The Government is now allowing people holding a Category B driving licence to drive vehicles weighing up to 4250kg – but only if they are zero-emission vehicles.

Previously, motorhome driving licence laws meant anyone with a category B licence – generally people who passed their driving test after 1997, and older drivers over 70 – could only drive vehicles with a maximum authorised mass (MAM) no higher than 3500kg.

But following the update, which came in on 10 June, such drivers can drive vehicles up to 4250kg, or possibly even up to 5000kg if the extra 750kg can be attributed to onboard equipment designed to support disabled passengers. However, they have to be zero-emission vehicles.

When it comes to motorhomes or campervans, however, the upgrade is largely theoretical, as there is currently no zero-emission campervan on the market that weighs over 3500kg.

However, for those who are considering buying such a vehicle, take a look at what our expert Peter Rosenthal had to say about electric campervans.

Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto

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PeterBaber

Peter Baber is Reviews Editor of both Practical Motorhome and Practical Caravan. He has been reviewing motorhomes for the best part of a decade now. His first caravan reviews date back to the early 1990s when he first worked on Practical Caravan, before he embarked on a 20-year career in business journalism which saw him edit a wide variety of magazines, and launch a few too, including one that won an award. Although he enjoyed that, he always knew he wanted to come back. Peter reports on all the new models that make it to dealer forecourts each season, giving his judgement online and in magazine reviews. He has twice been shortlisted for a Caravan Writers Guild award. When he is not working, apart from going on motorhome trips himself (mostly local to where he lives in West Yorkshire, but also last year right across France) he likes trying to write novels, cooking, throwing the odd pot, and has just taken up tennis.