With guaranteed work as soon as you are qualified, becoming a heavy goods vehicle (HGV) driver is an attractive career prospect. There are flexibility and variety on offer, and by training, for the right license, you can gain accreditation that will help you find a fulfilling career to fit your talents.
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Category C1: 7.5-Tonne Licence
If you passed your car driving test before January 1997, you will already have a license to drive a 7.5-tonne HGV. This sort of vehicle is commonly used by courier companies and businesses doing many drops on a particular route.
Training for this and any HGV license will require you to have passed your test for a full car license and have a professional driving qualification – the Driver Certificate of Professional Competence (CPC). The Gov.uk website explains that you need the Driver CPC if you want to drive a bus, coach or lorry. However, you won’t need it if you will only be driving HGVs as a hobby.
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Category C1+E: 7.5-Tonne with a Trailer
You can train for and be licensed to drive a 7.5-tonne vehicle with a towed trailer in excess of 7,500 kilograms in weight – something like a small portable generator or a luggage trailer. But the total weight of the vehicle and the trailer must not be more than 12,000 kilos.
Category C+E: Articulated Lorries
This is the license that you’ll need if you want to drive the type of vehicle that may first spring to mind when you think of an HGV – articulated lorries.
C+E lorries are often used to move stock from ports to distribution sites, and they often cover long distances. As with any kind of driving license, it is important to procure the right insurance to cover your driving. HGV insurance from https://www.quotemetoday.co.uk/hgv-insurance can be tailored to any business and category of HGV being used.
Category C: Rigid Lorries
Fixed body lorries up to 18 tonnes in weight are often used to move goods between cities and stock shops in towns because they are maneuverable and fit smaller roads.
With many opportunities for work across the UK, it can pay to take your HGV license and renew it every five years, or every year when you reach 65.
