Is a CDL required for personal use over 26000lbs.?

**Grandstander** · 09-10-2022, 05:56 PM

So to pull most solitudes you need the payload capacity of a dually. Doing so will put the combined truck and trailer weight over 26000 lbs. With that said is a CDL required since it would be for personal and not commercial use?

**Hoopy Frood** · 09-10-2022, 06:06 PM

Not a CDL, but a modified driver's license, very similar to a CDL, and you'd probably find most DMV's have no idea what you're talking about when you bring it up.

**llr2800** · 09-10-2022, 06:49 PM

Requirements can very by state on what if any special license is required. Unless you are using it for business, auto racing, trade shows etc a CDL is not required. And for CDL it is by rated weight, GVWR not actual weight. I assume the GVWR on your truck is under 26,000 lbs so no CDL needed

**Grandstander** · 09-10-2022, 07:42 PM

Originally Posted by llr2800

Requirements can very by state on what if any special license is required. Unless you are using it for business, auto racing, trade shows etc a CDL is not required. And for CDL it is by rated weight, GVWR not actual weight. I assume the GVWR on your truck is under 26,000 lbs so no CDL needed

So this is where I am confused. If the maximum weight of the truck I am looking to buy is 13000lbs., and 5400 of this is the payload meaning the truck empty is 7600lbs.? A 310 5th wheel has a max weight of 15000lbs. So do you add the 15000 and the max truck weight of 13000lbs together, exceeding the 26000lbs. CDL requirement? Or do you add the 15000lbs, to the truck weight and what ever the payload weight adds up to since the loaded pin weight, gear, hitch, and people which would not equal the 13000 lb., max weight of the truck?

**xrated** · 09-10-2022, 08:09 PM

Originally Posted by Grandstander

So this is where I am confused. If the maximum weight of the truck I am looking to buy is 13000lbs., and 5400 of this is the payload meaning the truck empty is 7600lbs.? A 310 5th wheel has a max weight of 15000lbs. So do you add the 15000 and the max truck weight of 13000lbs together, exceeding the 26000lbs. CDL requirement? Or do you add the 15000lbs, to the truck weight and what ever the payload weight adds up to since the loaded pin weight, gear, hitch, and people which would not equal the 13000 lb., max weight of the truck?

All of your worry is moot, until you find out the requirements for driver's license classification in YOUR resident state. Here is an example, I live in the state of TN and there is NO special requirement for what you are talking about. I have a regular Class D license and I have a 14,000 lb GVWR Dually and a 20,000 lb GVWR Momentum trailer that I tow. TN doesn't require anything other than a regular Class D, so that is what I have. And to further expand on that, my license AND what I drive and tow is legal in every state in the United States. Driver's license requirements for your resident state are reciprocal in every state you would drive/tow in.

Having said that, if your state of residence requires a special classification, then you will need to get it to be legal. Another thing to remember...just because you are licensed legally, you still have to obey the "Rules of the Road" in whatever state you are driving in. For example, if double towing is legal in your state, it may be illegal in a state that you are traveling in and you would be subject to a ticket....even though it may be legal in your state. Another example in regard to that. In your state, overall length limit might be 65' for the truck and trailer, but if you are driving through a different state, their overall length limit may be less.

So in summation, driver's license requirements are dictated by your state of residency.........Rules of the Road are dictated by the state that you are in.

**Hoopy Frood** · 09-10-2022, 08:53 PM

Most states that require a special license, require them if the GVWR of your tow vehicle, and the GVWR of the towed vehicle total more than 26,001 lbs. Missouri has that requirement, so does Texas and quite a few other states. It's your responsibility to know what license you are required to possess.

But it has nothing to do with how much you actually carry, or tow, but how much you can potentially carry, or tow. GVWR.

**Jerryr** · 09-10-2022, 09:29 PM

Originally Posted by Grandstander

So to pull most solitudes you need the payload capacity of a dually. Doing so will put the combined truck and trailer weight over 26000 lbs. With that said is a CDL required since it would be for personal and not commercial use?

As stated, each state is different.

Here’s a picture the back of my FLORIDA drivers license. It’s good for ANY RV regardless of weight

Any non commercial vehicle with GVWR < 26,000 lbs OR ANY RV

**Steven@147** · 09-11-2022, 06:34 AM

Yup, they got you covered. It's by individual state drivers license requirements. Many first time RV owners find out about this and their state of residency / drivers license requirements after they have purchased their rig, then are left wondering what to do next. A lot of state licensing departments are of little help because they don't know about it or understand it either.

The whole idea here is that these special licensing states want to be sure the drivers are towing or driving these RV rigs safely so they make you take a written test and a driving test and make you get a special drivers license. You can debate the wisdom of this special requirement off on another forum.

We are licensed in Texas, so our requirements are if you have a towable RV (bumper pull and/or 5th wheels) and your combined Truck and RV GVWRs is equal to or greater than 26001# And the trailer/RV you are towing GVWR is equal to or greater than 10001# you need a Class A Non-CDL drivers license.
If you have a Motorhome and its GVWR is equal to or greater than 26001# you need a Class B Non-CDL drivers license.

I have a Texas Class A Non-CDL drivers license for our rig.

Many RV owners that go fulltime move their residency to a state that doesn't have special drivers license requirements, but that is a whole different conversation.

**el Rojo** · 09-11-2022, 06:44 AM

What state is your residency in?

**Grandstander** · 09-11-2022, 07:02 AM

Originally Posted by el Rojo

What state is your residency in?

NJ, I just read the CDL manual exemptions and there is a note stating the following on the last line:

Exemptions to CDL Requirements
Taxi drivers, ride-sharing drivers, firefighters, First aid/rescue squad vehicle operators, farmers hauling their own products and equipment within 150 miles of their farms, non-civilian operators of military equipment, operators of limousines engaged in services related to the mortuary sciences and operators of construction equipment not designed for operation on public roads are exempt and should not apply for a CDL. Recreational vehicle operators are exempt if the vehicle is only for personal use.