Motor Vehicles (Approval) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2001

Part I General

Citation and commencement

1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Motor Vehicles (Approval) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2001 and shall come into operation on 1st June 2001.

Interpretation

2.—(1) In these Regulations—

“the 1970 Directive” means Council Directive 70/156/EEC of 6th February 1970 on the approximation of laws of the member States relating to the type approval of motor vehicles and their trailers(1) as last amended by Directive 98/14/EC of 25th March 1998(2);

“the 1985 Regulations” means the Motor Vehicles (Type Approval) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1985(3);

“ambulance”, “armoured vehicle”, “hearse” and “motor caravan” have the meanings given by paragraph 1 of Schedule 1;

“approval requirements”, in relation to a vehicle, means the requirements prescribed by Article 31A of the Order as they apply to that vehicle and which are set out in regulation 4(1);

“axle weight”, “gross weight”, “kerbside weight”, “maximum gross weight”, “maximum permitted axle weight” and “wheel” have the meanings given in regulation 2(1) of the Construction and Use Regulations;

“the Construction and Use Regulations” means the Motor Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1999(4);

“design gross weight” means the weight which the vehicle is designed or adapted not to exceed when in normal use and travelling on a road laden;

“EEA State” means a State which is a contracting party to the Agreement on the European Economic Area signed at Oporto on 2nd May 1992 as adjusted by the Protocol signed at Brussels on 17th March 1993(5);

“family of types” has the same meaning as in Annex XII to the 1970 Directive;

“kg” means kilograms;

“kph” means kilometres per hour;

“the Lighting Regulations” means the Road Vehicles Lighting Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2000(6);

“mm” means millimetres;

“mph” means miles per hour;

“the Order” means the Road Traffic (Northern Ireland) Order 1981;

“registered” means registered under the Vehicle Excise and Registration Act 1994(7);

“relevant vehicle” means a vehicle to which these Regulations apply;

“Schedule 1 vehicle” has the meaning given in Schedule 1;

“subject matter” means a subject matter in relation to which approval requirements are specified in Schedule 2 or 3 and “applicable subject matter” in relation to a vehicle means a subject matter as respects which approval requirements are applicable to the vehicle in accordance with these Regulations.

(2) References to vehicles of categories M1, M2, M3, N1, N2 and N3 are to vehicles of those categories as defined in Annex II.A to the 1970 Directive.

(3) A reference in any provision of these Regulations to a prescribed fee is a reference to the fee (if any) for the time being prescribed for the purposes of that provision in the Motor Vehicles (Approval) (Fees) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2001(8).

(4) Paragraphs (7) and (8) of regulation 2 of the Construction and Use Regulations (determination of the numbers of wheels and axles of a vehicle) shall apply for the purposes of these Regulations (other than item 16 of Schedule 2) as they apply for the purposes of the Construction and Use Regulations (other than regulations 31 and 32).

(5) For the purposes of these Regulations, a vehicle is to be regarded as being manufactured on or after a particular date if it is first assembled on or after that date, even if it includes one or more parts which were manufactured before that date.

(6) Schedule 5—

(a) interprets expressions relating to Community instruments and ECE Regulations (including references to complying with provisions of such instruments); and

(b) sets out details of the Community instruments and ECE Regulations referred to in these Regulations.

(1)

O.J. No. L42, 23.2.70, p. 1

(2)

O.J. No. L91, 25.3.98, p. 1

(3)

S.R. 1985 No. 294; relevant amending Regulations are S.R. 1987 No. 389, S.R. 1988 No. 405, S.R. 1990 No. 84, S.R. 1991 No. 408, S.R. 1992 Nos. 86 and 508, S.R. 1995 No. 38, S.R. 1996 No. 156 and S.R. 1999 No. 234

(4)

S.R. 1999 No. 454

(5)

Cm 2073 and 2183

(6)

S.R. 2000 No. 169

(7)

1994 c. 22

(8)

S.R. 2001 No. 170