COMMERCIAL drivers operating in the EU need to prepare for Brexit by making sure they have the right documents.
To get ready for deal and no deal scenarios, road haulage operators need to: register trailers for international commercial use (weighing over 750kg); check if you need International Driving Permits and how many you may need. Also the haulier’s vehicle insurance provider must be contacted to get a motor insurance green card.
If the UK leaves the EU without a deal on 29 March, drivers might need an International Driving Permit (IDP) for EU and the European Economic Area (Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein). DVSA says they are available from the Post Office.
Green cards are an international certificate of motor insurance. If the UK leaves the EU without a deal, commercial drivers may need a green card as proof of third party motor insurance cover.
The government remains confident that hauliers won’t need ECMT permits to drive in the EU after Brexit, but DVSA is still progressing contingency plans to prepare for all scenarios such as securing more ECMT permits, but the Road Haulage Association says it came as no surprise that the initial bidding process for permits was grossly oversubscribed. Thousands of UK international hauliers are still in the intolerable position of being unable to plan future operations.
Commenting, RHA chief executive, Richard Burnett said: ‘When the bidding process for permits was first announced, we said that it amounted to nothing more than a lottery system. Even with the new allocation, ECMT will only supply permits for around 10% of the sector’s needs.’
Applicants who have been unsuccessful in the first bidding round will be automatically entered into the next allocation round for annual and monthly ECMT permits. The RHA is calling for the application process for permits to be reopened for a short period to allow operators who did not apply first time and those with Euro 5 vehicles to apply.
TIP Trailer Services has completed the construction of a brand new, secure parking facility for heavy goods vehicles, located in Dourges, northern France. The facility opening in April, will provide 150 HGV spaces for transport operators from around Europe, whose drivers require a safe and comfortable place to park in this busy road transport region to the south of Lille.
The TIP park offers a range of security features, such as vehicle and pedestrian access control, 24/7 manned security, and thermal camera surveillance, whilst the overall security of the fully fenced site is third party accredited.
The facility also provides drivers with an ‘all-in-one’ rest area, offering shower, laundry, restaurant and free Wi-Fi services for the comfort of those who are staying on site during the day and overnight. Similar, reckons TN to Kaiserwind close to Nuremburg.
Also, at the site, and just opened for business, is a brand new TIP seven bay workshop and two bay tyre maintenance facility that offers, not only heavy goods vehicle and trailer maintenance and repair services, but also a TIP trailer rental service.
