Heavy Vehicle Licence Classes and Vehicle Categories
Know the classes and what each one legally covers
Queensland heavy vehicle licensing is built around gross vehicle mass (GVM) and gross combination mass (GCM), not around how big a truck looks. A car licence covers vehicles up to 4.5 tonnes GVM and a trailer up to 4.5 tonnes GVM. The Light Rigid (LR) class covers a rigid vehicle of 4.5 to 8 tonnes GVM, plus a trailer up to 9 tonnes GVM. Medium Rigid (MR) covers a rigid vehicle over 8 tonnes GVM with up to two axles. Heavy Rigid (HR) covers a rigid vehicle over 8 tonnes GVM with three or more axles, and may tow a trailer up to 9 tonnes GVM. Heavy Combination (HC) covers a prime mover or rigid vehicle towing a trailer over 9 tonnes GVM, including a semi-trailer. Multi-Combination (MC) covers a prime mover or rigid vehicle towing two or more trailers.
Traps to watch for
Questions love to blur the boundary between GVM and GCM, or to describe a vehicle by its body style rather than its mass. A rigid truck with a dog trailer is not automatically HR; the trailer mass pushes it into HC. Remember that the class you hold also authorises the classes below it, and that a learner or provisional driver cannot simply step into a heavy combination. Also note that an LR or MR licence does not authorise towing a heavy trailer beyond the stated limit.
Rule of thumb
Ask two questions in order: is the vehicle rigid or is it towing? Then, what is the mass? Rigid over 8 t with three or more axles is HR; add a trailer over 9 t and it becomes HC; add a second trailer and it becomes MC. Worked example: a three-axle rigid truck of 12 t GVM towing a 10 t GVM trailer is HC, not HR, because the trailer exceeds 9 t.