Improve your nearside vision (EU Directive 2003/38/EC)

Over the years there have been a number of tragic accidents involving pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists moving along the inside of a lorry.

In response to this problem, new legislation, which aims to improve driver visibility, comes into force from the 1st April 2009.

Your horsebox may require additional nearside mirror(s) to comply with the new legislation.

Under the new legislation, all vehicles over 3.5 tonnes registered after the 1st January 2000 need to meet the new standard, which will require the fitting of a new mirror or mirrors to the vehicle's nearside. The modification greatly improves the driver's nearside field of view.

All lorries affected by the new legislation must be upgraded by the 31st March 2009. A Self Declaration Form needs to be completed by the operator or person fitting the mirror. The Self Declaration Form will be required at the next annual test to confirm that the correct mirrors have been fitted.

It is estimated that the legislation will affects around 400,000 vehicles - that's a lot of mirrors to be checked and fitted. For this reason, we would suggest that you contact your local repairer and arrange for the vehicle to be inspected as soon as possible, to avoid backlogs nearer the deadline date.

For more details, contact your local repairer, main dealer or your local VOSA test centre or visit the FTA website:
http://www.fta.co.uk/information/retrofitting-mirrors-to-hgvs/

REMEMBER - the legislation applies to all vehicles over 3.5 tonnes registered after the 1st January 2000.