BEFORE YOU TRAVEL

Thinking about the necessary requirements before travelling with your horse

Horseboxes and trailers will sometimes only be used occasionally, so users need to be extremely vigilant to basic vehicle maintenance. It’s good practice to form the habit of regular basic checks of your horsebox or trailer. Good vehicle maintenance will ensure conformance to legal requirements and the improved safety of your horse.

When you transport a horse with a horsebox or trailer you need to make sure you:

 have the right driving licence for the weight of your vehicle or trailer.

 have an operator licence (if you need one)

 are qualified to transport horses if you’re travelling for over 8 hours.

 do not overload your vehicle or trailer.

 carry out regular safety checks.

 have a valid MOT for your vehicle or trailer.

 follow rules on animal welfare.

Horseboxes and trailers are machines we use to transport our horses to where they need to be, whether it’s a quick trip to the vets or a longer journey to an event, its vital that they meet the needs of you and your horse.

Horses come in all different sizes so making sure that your machine will take your horses weight and meet the legal requirements should be near the top of your list of things to check before boarding your horse.

Horseboxes can be deceptively heavy before you load your horse, with built in facilities and equipment will lessen the weight it can hold when your horse is loaded, especially if your horsebox is carrying more than one of your equine friends.

We want all passengers on bord be it human or equine to be safe when travelling so if you are unsure then check the legal requirements or a horsebox specialist.

SvTech Ltd was formed in 1993 specifically to offer technical support to truck and van manufacturers and converters in the UK and Europe. They specialise in matters relating to Vehicle Type Approval, with particular emphasis on payloads and braking systems.

Over twenty years they have continually enhanced their services and now sit as the UK’s leading authority on re-rating vehicles, which includes uprating to give more payload capacity, and downplating to reduce Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW) for licence and low-emission purposes