Enjoying affordable trips with a bunch of family and friend groups is fun. That’s why a lot of people opt for hiring minibus and coaches to have their family or business trips.
Hiring a minibus from a hiring directory such as Instabus is quite easy. You just have to go to the website link: https://instabus.co.uk/, and hire a suitable minibus for you.
But, what will you do if you don’t have a Passenger Carrying Vehicle (PCV) license which is required to drive a minibus?
Well, the good news is that you can hire and drive a minibus on your standard car license. But, there are certain limitations and conditions to it.
Keep reading this article to find these limitations and conditions.
Limitations of Hiring a Minibus on Car License:
If you have a category B license (regular car license), then you can drive a minibus under a Section 19 Permit.
According to this Permit, there are certain limitations and requirements which you should know:
● Your age should be between 21 to 70.
● If you are above 70, you should meet the Group 2 Medical Standards.
● Your license should be 2 years older.
● You are driving voluntarily and there shouldn’t be any “hire or reward” included other than the out-of-pocket expenses.
● You are giving your services to a non-profit organization that is giving benefits to the community.
● The minibus should be available for the organization’s members and not for the general public.
● The minibus should have up to 16 passenger seats.
● The weight of a minibus including passengers should be around 3.5 tonnes. 750 kg can be added to it if there is any special equipment for disabled passengers in it.
● You are not towing a trailer.
So, it means that you can’t drive the minibus to earn money on a standard car license. You can only provide social service by driving the members of the organization from one place to another on a minibus. You can take money from them to fulfill the expenses you have spent on the trip, but you can’t take your profit.
You can only drive a minibus which has a maximum of 16 passenger seats. Here, a lot of people have been confused about whether they can drive a minibus of more than 16 seats if passengers are less than 16. The answer to this query is no.
The law has stated that drivers with a standard car license can drive a standard-size minibus that has up to 16 passenger seats.
The UK Government has also stated that if you are driving a minibus with 8 passenger seats, you can tow a trailer whose weight shouldn’t exceed 750 kg.
There are a lot of minibus hiring directories that don’t allow you to drive a minibus abroad with a car license. So, for traveling abroad, it is better to have a D or D1 license.
Mini Buses you can drive on Standard Car License:
Certain mini buses fulfill the criteria of weight and number of passenger seats for drivers with standard car licenses. Let’s discuss these minibosses:
1. Ford Tourneo Minibus:
Ford Tourneo Minibus is an excellent family wagon with 9 passenger seats. The space in this small shuttle bus is amazing which makes it ideal for picnics or short travels.
2. Renault Trafic Passenger Minibus:
The Renault Trafic minibus is similar to Ford Tourneo Minibus, which makes it the best choice for businesses and families. It looks like a car so you can drive it safely with a car license.
3. Ford Transit Minibus:
Ford Transit Minibus is a heavy transport that has 16 passenger seats. It can allow 17 passengers, one more than you are allowed on your standard car license.
If you want to avail seventeenth seat on the standard license, you can customize your minibus permit transit. In this case, the extra seat will be no issue.
4. Mercedes Sprinter Transfer Minibus:
This minibus has fifteen passenger seats and is seven meters long. Its class and refinement make it an ideal choice for a lot of people.
Key Takeaways:
There are certain limitations that you have to follow if you want to drive a minibus on a standard car license. A lot of minibus hiring agencies will not allow you to hire a minibus on the standard license, or will not allow you to travel abroad, so you have to keep these facts in mind too.
We hope that this article will help you in making educated decisions when you will go for hiring a minibus with a car license and will use this transport on your B license.
