- May 24, 2014
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I was over on one of the Manufacturer forums and a post caught my eye. I cannot vouch vouch for the accuracy, truth or content of the post, but i thought it may be of interest over here. I personally dont know of this, i thought they just used the protbale axle kits.
Did you know that we've all been joined up to this new club?
An article in this month's MMM outlines how 'Big Brother' is now able to monitor the weight of our vehicles as we drive along our smart motorways.
Anyone not sure about their running weight should visit their local weighbridge and take actions accordingly.
"Weight limits are monitored by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (which took over from VOSA in 2014).
New technology means that your motorhome can be weighed while it's in motion and many motorways have this technology built in. It's linked to cameras that detect number plates and can automatically compare the vehicle's actual weight with its registered weight.
This weight-in-motion (W1M) system was primarily brought in to tackle overladen trucks, but works just as effectively on motorhomes. We know VOSA has targeted vehicles leaving or arriving at motorhome shows in the past. We understand there are at least 12 WIMs in the road network but some estimates now put this at nearer 50.
If you're caught driving an overweight motorhome, you'll either get an on-the-spot fine of up to £300 per offence, or be issued with a court summons. If the 'van is deemed unsafe, you may be prevented from carrying on with your journey.
Additionally an overloaded motorhome may be uninsured and, if you are over 3,500kg and your licence doesn't allow for that, then you could face two offences - an overloading offence and a licence offence with fines of up to £1,000 for the licence transgression and six penalty points."
"PENALTIES FOR BEING OVERLOADED
If you are caught overladen, the penalties are:
Less than 10% - £100 fixed penalty.
10% up to but not including 15% -£200 fixed penalty.
15% and over - £300 fixed penalty.
30% and over - Court summons The DVSA allows a 5% leeway (this 5% leeway is not recognised in Europe) before issuing a penalty notice. For extreme cases of overloading, the fines can be up to £5,000. If the tyres are overloaded, no leeway is given"