Safety

Luxurious or not, all minibuses grossing at up to 3.5 tonne and first used on or after 1 October 2001 must have lap and diagonal belts fitted to all forward-facing seats. So must minibuses grossing at above that weight — 17-seaters may be plated at up to 4.2 tonne or more to avoid overloading — unless an energy-absorbing surface is positioned in front of the seat concerned, in which case a lap belt can be provided. Generally, the only surface in front of most passengers is the seat in front which in itself can cause a nasty injury if the passenger is thrown against it. So, in all cases, it is best to have lap and diagonal belts fitted to all seats and not run the risk.

If you're carrying a party of children on a trip then your minibus must be equipped with seat belts, regardless of its size or age. If the belts have been installed retrospectively, then check with either a dealer or a reputable bodybuilder that the job has been done properly. If it hasn't been, then the belts could be worse than useless. In most cases, it is not really suitable to have belts fitted retrospectively as there is little chance of there being suitable anchorage points within the seats. Anchorage points fitted to the seats during retrospective installation have little chance of being successful if testing was conducted.

Advanced Vehicle Builders only solution to this problem is to conduct a complete seat exchange in the passenger area. By removing all the existing seats and replacing them with the Advanced Euro Seat mounted to the Advanced Internal Frame System you can be assured that your whole seating system (seats, belts, belt anchorages and seating floor fixings) will withstand testing.

M1 Certification

Advanced Vehicle Builders produce minibuses to M1 passenger car safety standards, despite the fact that — surprisingly — this is not a legal requirement.

M1 mandates that a vehicle's seats, seat belts and mountings be capable of standing up to a 20g deceleration from 30mph without breaking loose or deforming past specific geometrical tolerances. That's twice what is needed for M2 certification; the minimum standard minibuses must meet by law.

Advanced have been able to achieve M1 in all of its minibuses by fitting an internal frame system. It's a structural steel box section frame mounted inside the vehicle and secured through the floor to the underside of the chassis. All the rear seats are bolted to it, ensuring that in a smash all the forces are transmitted to the beefiest part of the minibus and the seats don't break away from their mountings. The Advanced Euro Seat itself is vitally important too. It’s all very well the seat remaining fixed the vehicle floor in an accident, but the loads applied to the seat by the passenger (whilst wearing a seatbelt) in an accident are tremendous. So it is equally important that the seats can withstand these loadings in an accident too.

Prior to testing, measurements are taken of the seats and their seatbelt anchorage points to firstly, record their original position but secondly, and more importantly, to ensure the position of the seatbelt anchorages comply with the very strict European legislation. After the high load testing has been carried out, the same measurements are taken again. Within the legislation the seats and seatbelt anchorages are permitted some deformity within strict tolerances and can only pass the test if they not only remain attached to the vehicle but remain within the geometrical tolerance also.

PCV (PSV)

If you're running a PCV (PSV) then you must either hold a PCV (PSV) Operator's Licence, a Section 19 permit or a community bus permit.

Issued by an official known as the Traffic Commissioner, the first-named is the same as the O Licence held by firms that run full-sized coaches. To obtain it you must provide details of your financial resources, the arrangements you have for the vehicle's inspection and servicing, and promise that you'll keep proper maintenance records, among other requirements.

Failure to adhere to any of the undertakings you've agreed to could lead to the loss of your licence.

Section 19 permits — so called because they're granted under that section of the Transport Act 1985 — are issued to schools using minibuses to carry pupils, just so long as they are not doing so for profit. They can also be granted to churches, welfare organisations and similar bodies. This enables a nominal charge to be made (without profit) towards the running of the vehicle. So, for example, it could be considered that members of a cub scout group pay for the use of the groups minibus indirectly through the subscription each member hands over to the group controller (for example Akela) on a weekly basis. However, as this organisation is benefiting the community on a non-profit basis, they may apply for a Section 19 permit allowing them to continue assisting funding the running of the bus in this way without having to comply with full PSV requirements.

Issued by the Traffic Commissioner under Section 22 of the 1985 Act, a community bus permit is intended for organisations providing local bus services using vehicles with no more than 16 passenger seats. The service must be non-profit-making and provided with an eye to benefiting the community.

Do you have to fit a tachograph?

The answer to this has always been YES if you are proposing to take a minibus with nine or more passenger seats outside the UK. Then a tachograph most certainly should be used and you will be required to comply with the EC Drivers' Hours Rules. They govern how many hours drivers are permitted to work and the timing and duration of the breaks they must take.

11th April 2007

New UK legislation confirms that the requirement for tachographs will become mandatory for vehicles operated in the UK from 11th April 2007 in order to comply with New UK Drivers' Hours Rules for vehicles with 9 to 16 passengers.

Derogations from these regulations include:-

1. Vehicles with 9 to 16 passengers (plus driver) used exclusively for the non-commercial carriage of passengers
2. Vehicles owned or hired without a driver and do not compete with private transport undertakings

Existing exemptions which remain in force are:-

1. Health bodies, ambulances or vehicles used to carry staff, patients, medical supplies or equipment
2. Local authority vehicles used for old people (and certain welfare provisions)

Where the requirement for a tachograph may be ambiguous, the operator should contact their local VOSA office to confirm their obligations.

Where a tachograph is required, then vVehicles registered from 11 April 2007 will require a tachograph fitted from new. This tachograph must be of the new digital format. Vehicles registered prior to this date will require a tachograph to be fitted retrospectively and these vehicles will have until 31st December 2007 to comply. During this period of compliance until a tachograph is fitted, drivers must keep an extract of the duty roster and service timetable.

For vehicles registered from 1st May 2006 onwards, the tachograph must be of the digital format whilst vehicles registered prior to this date may have tachographs of the old analogue format fitted.

Analogue tachographs employ waxed charts, but the new digital format requires the driver to insert a personalised smart card that can be obtained from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency. It will be an offence for anybody who is not a smart card holder to drive a vehicle equipped with a digital tachograph.

Road Speed Limiter

A Road Speed Limiter (RSL) is a mechanical or electronic device which limits the maximum speed of a vehicle. The basic function of the system is to limit the maximum speed of a vehicle to a preset level whilst the throttle (accelerator) pedal is fully depressed. The current legal requirement for the maximum speed of a minibus is 100kph (62mph).

Does a RSL need to be fitted? OK, the answer is not yet simple (not until 1st January 2008). This is because we are currently undergoing a phased introduction.

All new minibuses (registered since 1st January 2005) will require a RSL, either from new or by 1st January 2008.

For minibuses remaining solely on the UK mainland:
1) A new minibus (not exceeding 5000kgs GVW) must have a RSL fitted by 1st January 2008
2) A new minibus (exceeding 5000kgs GVW) must have a RSL fitted from new prior to first use on UK roads.

Minibuses travelling off the UK mainland into Europe:
A new minibus must have a RSL fitted at time of first registration

Older minibuses (registered between 01/10/01 & 31/12/04): with a diesel engine compliant to Euro 3 levels:

For operation solely in the UK:
Must have a RSL fitted by 1st January 2007

For operation on international transport:
Must have a RSL fitted by 1st January 2006

Driving Licence

As for driving licences, anybody who passed their driving test prior to 1 January 1997 can drive a 17-seater minibus.

Anybody who passed their test after that date is restricted to vehicles with no more than eight passenger seats and weighing no more than 3.5 tonne. If they want to drive anything larger, then they've got to take a separate test.

Anybody asked to drive a PCV (PSV) must take a separate test to obtain a Passenger Carrying Vehicle licence.

You can drive a minibus that falls under the permit scheme without a PCV (PSV) licence, but you must be 21 or over, have held a full ordinary licence for at least two years and not receive payment other than expenses or compensation for lost earnings for the work involved. The minibus must weigh no more than 3.5 tonne.

Make sure your minibus carries a first aid kit and a fire extinguisher. Make sure too that emergency exits are properly marked.

The DVLA link on the right will take you to more detailed information.

The Directgov link will take you to the Directgov site and explain exactly what you are permitted to drive and what your obligations are.

Non Compliance

Sometimes minibuses are used without the necessary licences or permits and by drivers who do not have the appropriate qualifications. Such breaches of the law may only be discovered when there is a road traffic accident. However, the offenders are likely to face prosecution and will probably find that their insurance cover is invalid.

Running minibuses need not be a legislative nightmare. There is plenty of free advice available. A good starting point is RoSPA's "Minibus Safety- A Code of Practice" booklet. This can be downloaded here as a PDF document (3.2mb) but please check the RoSPA website as occasional amendments are published.

Definition of a Minibus

The following is an extract from the table of definitions as detailed in (Regulation 3(2)) of Statutory Instrument No. 1078 - The Road Vehicles (Construction & Use) Regulations 1986:

1 Expression	2 Meaning
minibus	a motor vehicle which is constructed or adapted to carry more than 8 but not more than 16 seated passengers in addition to the driver.