The Office of the Traffic Commissioner has issued a reminder to vehicle operators about the new financial standing levels that will apply from next month.  

On 1 January, minimum financial standing limits for standard national and international operating licences rise from £7,200 to £7,400 for the first vehicle and from £4,000 to £4,100 for each additional vehicle authorised. The limits for restricted licences remain unchanged at £3,100 for the first vehicle and £1,700 for each additional one.

The increase is simply due to exchange rate fluctuations – the core EU regulation rates of €9,000 for the first vehicle and €5,000 for each subsequent one have not changed, stressed James Firth, head of road freight and enforcement policy at the FTA. Although the increases are small, added Firth, they may be “unwelcome” for small operators and could add up to a “not insubstantial amount” for the largest ones, he said.

Jack Semple, director of policy at the RHA, said the increases were unlikely to make “any material difference” to operators. “I don’t think it’s a big issue… and the benefit of an annual evaluation is that people don’t get really big surprises every five years, as they did before,” he commented.

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