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Half of agricultural vehicles do not yet have a license plate
It is estimated that there are still 250.000 tractors, harvesters and trailed machines that do not have a registration number. This is reported by the National Road Transport Agency (RDW). In the last eleven weeks of the year, this means peak traffic when everyone still has to apply for a license plate quickly. According to the RDW, all the rules are still not clear to everyone.
Almost every tractor, self-propelled or towed machine must have a registration number. This also applies to forklifts, lawnmowers and other vehicles that occasionally hit the road. No license plate means no admission on the road after January 1. RDW conversion manager Rob van Dokkumburg calls it a financial loss for vehicle owners and companies that do not comply with the registration obligation before 1 January.
Most tractors registered
The number of registrations rose relatively little in the third quarter. The RDW received almost 60.000 agricultural and forestry tractors. It is estimated that 60% of the total has now been registered. In the same period, almost 44.000 trailed machines were registered. This means that slightly more than half is now registered. If the trailer is not registered, then a maximum speed of 25 km/h applies. When registered, this is 40 km/h, provided that the maximum construction speed allows this. This is also important for tractors. If 50 km/h is stated on the type plate, this is used.
The reasons why not everyone has applied for a license plate yet vary. To begin with, for a long time there was uncertainty about registering in the name of a partnership. It is precisely this legal form that is widely used in agriculture. In May, the RDW communicated that these vehicles must still be registered in the name of one of the sizes. According to the service, it will only be possible to do this in the name of the company from mid-2022. Entrepreneurs must therefore convert this registration next year. There is a cost of a tenner per vehicle.
Registration takes time
Another reason is time, because right now is a busy period for many companies. Certainly at contractors and arable farmers there are quite a few machines in the shed that all have to be given a license plate. That means taking pictures and registering each piece. Sometimes questions follow after registration. For example for more photos or additional information. Practice sometimes leads to special situations, experience has shown. Two tractors of the same type where the registration of one takes three months longer than the other. In any case, the treatment time is sometimes quite long. You can register online and it costs €18. If you do not, an inspection will be mandatory from 2022. This will cost you at least €140 and must be done at a recognized inspection station.
According to the RDW, a third reason that many vehicles are not yet registered is that there is still ignorance among vehicle owners. For example, people with old-timers or someone with a lawnmower who sometimes travels to a neighbor on the public road. "If the vehicle now has a truncated triangle, it must be registered," says Van Dokkumberg. To help there is a Selection aid on the website of the RDW.
Waiting times
The RDW man advises not to wait with registration. If the registration is not completed before January 1, the vehicle may no longer be used on the road. Given the large number of vehicles that still have to be registered, it is likely that waiting times will increase.
MMBS disappears
It was recently announced that it is no longer possible to register new MMBS vehicles. This mainly concerns cars/vans and agricultural trucks that have been inspected back to a lower speed. Existing vehicles can now get a T-plate. The RDW uses a 'extinction policy' for this. This is especially a no-brainer for contractors. A small number of specialist companies use agricultural trucks – also known as agricultural trucks – for a variety of applications. The sector also hopes to have the regulations amended.
Niels van der Boom
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