Vehicles which do not need Large Goods Vehicle [LGV] or Passenger Carrying Vehicle [PCV] entitlement

These pages include extracts from the DVLA's D100 leaflet called "What you need to know about driving licences". You can download the original document by following this link.
This leaflet and these pages gives general information. It is not a statement of law.
Whilst every effort has been made to ensure the information reproduced is correct, Select All cannot not be held responsible for any inaccuracies.

You normally need category C or D entitlement to drive a large lorry or bus on the road. However, in certain circumstances the following will apply.

• Category D licence holders can drive PCV recovery vehicles.

• Category C licence holders can also drive buses for road-testing or repair, as long as they’ve held their full licence for two years.

• Category B licence holders can drive some large vehicles as long as they meet certain conditions.

You can get more information from leaflet INF52 which you can download from www.direct.gov.uk/motoring.

Vehicles a person can drive without LGV or PCV entitlement include:

– steam-powered vehicles;

– lorries built before 1 January 1960 and used unladen and not pulling a loaded trailer;

– road construction machines, industrial tractors, agricultural motor vehicles, engineering equipment, works trucks and digging machines;

– vehicles with an unladen weight of up to 3.05 tonnes and fitted with equipment for raising a disabled vehicle;

– buses more than 30 years old carrying no more than eight passengers and not for hire or reward;

– play buses and exhibition buses;

– any vehicle being driven away by the police; and

– vehicles used for carrying lifeboats.