Category B is the only driving licence most UK drivers ever hold, and it comes with weight limits that rarely get tested until a bigger vehicle or a loaded trailer is involved. That licence covers cars and small vans up to 3,500kg, more than enough for daily driving and rarely a source of confusion. Problems show up later, when someone hires a van for a house move, borrows a horsebox, or buys a caravan and assumes their licence covers whatever they need.
Weight limits and towing entitlements depend on more than holding a full licence, including when the test was passed and what's being towed. The rules changed significantly in December 2021, catching out plenty of drivers who hadn't checked their entitlement in years, and knowing where the limits sit now avoids an expensive surprise at the roadside.
What A Standard Category B Licence Actually Allows
A category B licence covers vehicles up to 3,500kg maximum authorised mass, known as MAM, with room for up to eight passenger seats plus the driver. That figure includes the vehicle, fuel, passengers and whatever's carried, rather than the empty car or van's weight alone, which is where people often miscalculate. A car towing a small trailer under 750kg needs nothing extra, but attach anything heavier and the combined weight starts to matter more than either figure alone.
When The Load Exceeds What You're Entitled To Drive
House moves are where these limits get tested most, since a van big enough for a three-bedroom house rarely fits inside a standard licence's weight allowance. A Luton van loaded with furniture can easily push past 3,500kg once everything is inside, putting it beyond what a category B licence covers. Once a load like that is confirmed, the sensible move is handing it to an operator built for it. A moving company with the right operator licences and vehicle classes takes over, using drivers and vehicles already certified for loads a standard car licence was never designed to cover.
The Towing Rules That Changed In 2021
Towing rules used to depend on a separate car-and-trailer test, scrapped in December 2021 to free up test capacity for lorry drivers.
Passed before 1997: Older licences already include a higher towing entitlement, allowing a combined vehicle and trailer weight of up to 8,250kg without a further test.
Passed from 1997 onwards: The 2021 change added category B+E automatically, covering trailers up to 3,500kg with a combined weight of up to 7,000kg, since drivers in this group no longer need a separate towing test to reach that limit.
Either way, the trailer's actual weight and the vehicle's handbook limit still apply.
Checking Your Own Entitlement Before You Assume Anything
The categories on a photocard licence show exactly what's covered, though the codes aren't always self-explanatory. B and BE cover cars and ordinary trailer towing, while C1 covers medium-sized vehicles between 3.5 and 7.5 tonnes for anyone stepping up from a car licence. Checking a vehicle's own handbook matters just as much, since manufacturers set their own towing limits that can sit below the legal maximum for the category involved. Most licences update automatically when entitlements change, but confirming the right licence before towing for the first time takes a couple of minutes and rules out any doubt.
