New Type Approval regs for van conversions

10th December 2012

The European Community Whole Vehicle Type Approval for light vans comes into effect from 29 April 2013 and, as a result, light commercials up to 3.5 tonnes will require additional approval for any modifications made to them.

Almost all panel vans will have some modification to equip them for service, whether it is ply-lining, racking, lamp beacons or side-steps, and the BVRLA is concerned that each vehicle would have to be individually re-inspected, tested and approved.

However, if a van is registered before any modification work is done, the ECWTVA regulations do not apply – with the exception of chassis cabs that are due to be converted into, for example, tippers, dropsides or luton vans – because they are treated as incomplete vehicles and, as such, cannot be registered.

At a recent BVRLA forum, the Vehicle Certification Agency presented details of a ‘light touch’ approval scheme for the more common conversions, and said it was working with the BVRLA on a list of modifications that would be seen as having no impact on a vehicle’s original type approval.

BVRLA chief executive John Lewis said he was concerned that the system would “not be able to cope with this potential new surge in type approval testing. It could have a major effect on lead times for fleet van operators.”