Hey guys... I'm going to be pulling a lowboy trailer with about 4k pounds on it pretty soon and somebody told me today that I need to get my truck license and my driver's license upgraded...

The registration on my truck says 8000lbs. So, I'm told that if I want to pull a trailer that weighs ~5k that I need to have my truck licensed for a higher amount since truck + trailer will be greater than 8000 lbs....?

I was also told that I need to get my actual driver's license changed to a "class D". Now, as near as I can tell on a quick web search, class D is only required for somebody driving "for hire".

Do you WV guys that tow trailers have any of this stuff going on? First I'd heard of it. This sort of thing never came up when I was driving an '84 Ranger.

Thanks in advance!

 

As I understand it and I had to do with the horse trailer, it need to be licensed for the gross of the truck and trailer.
In my case it was 16,500#.
With a low boy you may be under other DOT codes and meed the class "D".
If the truck has a dump bed you need CDLs as I understand.

It would be best to call or talk to DMV!

Rod

 

Truck registration must be for a higher weight than the truck, trailer load, occupants and fuel weigh.

In other words, if you have your load on and people in the truck as it will be driving down the road, your registered weight has to be greater than the complete rig weighs.

I have mine licensed for 20,000 pounds, 135 dollars a year.
My insurance is also for 20,000 pounds, more than a regular truck insurance.

If you are getting paid to drive, like I'll give you 150 dollars to haul this thing from Elkins to Clarksburg, then you need a Class D license.

If the trailer weight is over 10,000 pounds, you need Class A CDL license and a DOT number.
If the registered gross weight is over 26,000 pounds you need a Class A CDL.
If you need a Class A CDL, you also need a physical card to carry with you.

If you have to have a DOT number, you also have to have a name legible from 50 feet displayed on your truck.


RV's are exempt.

Never heard of anything like that either.



10,000 pound skid steer, 3,500 pound trailer, 8,000 pound truck = 21,500 pounds

I am over registered gross by 1,500 pounds.

Yes, there are no DOT numbers or name, that picture was older than the law.
This is all because of 9/11 changes.

My question is this, can you hide a bigger bomb on that flatbed trailer in the picture?
Or the 35 foot fifth wheel RV trailer I see running down I 79 behind an F 350?

Makes perfect sense to someone in the government though.

 

By the law, Pizza Delivery drivers need a Class D license.
They are getting paid to drive.

When I haul stone on my truck, I am getting paid to drive.

 

Thanks for the quick replies fellas. Sounds like I might be good as far as the class D business goes as I'm not "for hire". But I'll likely be over the amount on my registration by about 4k pounds. Its fairly difficult to find info on this on the WV DOT page. I do plan to contact the DOT next chance I get.

So does the increased weight registration amount to anything other than more money?

Yep... typical gov't stuff. That's a pretty awesome truck Dave. I love Ford trucks from that era. My Dad has an '85 F250 but its a gasser.

 

Yes,I really like the body style and thank you.
I hope to do some body repairs this summer as well as some interior improvements.
After 430,000 miles it is starting to show a little wear and tear.

You may find some answers here if you wade through all the commercial stuff.

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

WV law is all based on what the Feds do, so everything is about the same these days.

With a flat bed trailer, do look at the tie down requirements.

Cargo Securement Rules - Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

 

The key seems to be "not for hire".

Joe

 

Yep... I'm still going to call the DMV and ask about this but near as I can tell I don't need a class D but I do need to up the weight on my registration.

I accidentally made the pull yesterday. Whoops. Hauled a load of stuff to the scrapyard and I weighed 13980 coming in and 9100 going out.

I'm over the registration weight of 8k pounds when pulling the trailer empty with my family on board. So, first order of business will be to up the registration. According to a spec sheet I found somewhere (on FTE I think?) my truck can have a max GCWR of 15k so I guess I will register it for that?

Thanks again guys.

 

You need a class B tag for your truck. I dont know why the DMV will even issue class A for F-250's.
Jesse

 

Jesse, what's a class B tag? When I registered the truck, nobody asked me any questions...other than do you want a specialty plate...I chose the 9-11 plate and that was that. My only real decision was that I wanted a two year registration instead of the single year.

Joe

 

Same here. No questions were asked about anything. The dealer (Corwin Ford) took care of all of that while I was signing the other papers. I expected a temporary tag but had the real McCoy as I drove it off the lot.

Joe, what is the weight shown on your registration card? Mine is 8000.

This all seems like a typical money thing that the gov't does sometimes. Like I heard the other day that they're thinking of increasing the cost of hunting license because, apparently, young people these days aren't interested in it so the number of hunters is down. But they still want the same amount of money from license sells, so we're gonna make up the difference for them... go figure.

 

A slight update here... I still haven't talked to the DMV about this, I might try & do that Tuesday while I'm in Elkins during thier regular business hours..

Anyhow, the only bit of info I did hear was that the class B tags run from July to July, so if I were to get mine changed now, I'd have to get it renewed again in July. So, I'll at least be waiting til then before converting.

Hope everyone's having a good weekend. T-Storms here today

 

I thought only Apportioned tags ran from July to July. Class A is a regular tag for light trucks and cars, good only up to 8000 pounds gross. Class B is truck tags. You tell the DMV girl you want class B and she will ask what you want the weight to be. The same way for Perm. Trailer tag. Thats the way it worked for me on a dually I used to have. I thought they were good for 12 months from when you get them, but it was a few years ago. I do know that my Apportioned tags were the July to July deal.
Jesse

 

Well, that could be the case because I just "heard" that from a guy at work, although he's usually pretty knowledgable about stuff like that. I still haven't had a chance to talk to the DMV.

 

Ok... last update here.

I went to the DMV today and re-registered my truck for 15k and got a class B tag. It was as simple as 77 FORD said, just tell the lady class B and how many pounds. I had to have my property tax receipt with me and fill out a card and hand them $60 and boom... that's it. These tags do run from July to July according to the lady.

Funny how giving the DMV an extra $30 a year suddenly makes my truck more capable of towing the additional weight