Reminder of Minibus Compliance Before the Next School Year

01 August 2019

​We don’t want to be the bearer of bad news, but as we’re halfway through the Summer break it’s becoming closer and closer to the planning stage for the next school term. Before your pupils arrive back in September, why not brush-up on your compliance knowledge before preparing your plans for your school.

At Marshall Minibus, we’re here to help educate you on the rules for driving minibuses. As we know, these are confusing and often misunderstood. There are plenty of organisations who claim to offer help and advice, but beware; these are often specialist training companies offering D1 training who have a vested interest in selling you their services. Although training and compliance is a very important part of our offering, the D1 category on your licence is not always required to be able to drive a minibus. We believe that advice should be given in good faith and with no hidden agenda, so in this section we will outline the current advice as we see it and give you links to the relevant official websites that support this view. 

Drivers who passed their car driving test before 1st January 1997 will usually have a D1 (101) minibus, (not for hire or reward) entitlement on their driving licence.  This remains on their licence until it expires when a driver reaches the age of 70, unless it is removed by the DVLA or DVA for Northern Ireland, generally on medical grounds. Even though the licence restriction says ‘not for hire or reward’ these licence holders can usually drive a minibus operated under a Section 19 / 22 / 10B (explained below) permit without any additional conditions. 

To find out how we can help with all of your school minibus requirements and give you an additional insight into the compliance regulations for driving a minibus, please visit our dedicated ‘Compliance’ section on our website here, or call us directly on 01480 220444.

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