Has anyone ever been stopped by the MTO (Ontario)

[c0608524]

Has anyone ever been stopped by the MTO? Particularly pulling a two horse with a 1500 truck.

Don’t kill me COTHers, but I’m trying to avoid getting the yellow sticker and being classified as a commercial hauler. For the record for out of province people, to be a commercial hauler in Ontario you either have to A) accept money for hauling (which I won’t be doing) or B) have a combined weight over 4500 kg.

Weighed my truck and trailer today empty… I’ll definitely be over with a horse in there.

To be honest I’m only trying to avoid paying the insurance for a commercial vehicle when I’m not making any money off it! I’m not trying to get out of safetying it, in fact I just had it safetied when I bought it even though it’s not necessary.

[Tiger_Paws]

[QUOTE=c0608524;8784560]
Has anyone ever been stopped by the MTO? Particularly pulling a two horse with a 1500 truck.

Don’t kill me COTHers, but I’m trying to avoid getting the yellow sticker and being classified as a commercial hauler. For the record for out of province people, to be a commercial hauler in Ontario you either have to A) accept money for hauling (which I won’t be doing) or B) have a combined weight over 4500 kg.

Weighed my truck and trailer today empty… I’ll definitely be over with a horse in there.

To be honest I’m only trying to avoid paying the insurance for a commercial vehicle when I’m not making any money off it! I’m not trying to get out of safetying it, in fact I just had it safetied when I bought it even though it’s not necessary.[/QUOTE]

You will not have to pay commercial insurance rates just because you have a yellow sticker.

If you get stopped by the MTO or the police and you do not have your yellow sticker they may be prohibited from driving further until you get your sticker. That means you are at the side of the road with your horses trying to arrange a tow.

Periodically the MTO will do a blitz targeting horse trailers.

[Jumper_Bump]

I’ve been hauling my 2 horse sundowner trailer for 5 years. I’ve never been stopped and have never been flagged into a weigh station.

This is the first year I don’t have my yellow sticker up to date, mostly as I’m not doing long ships, only running around the 20min between me and the local horse show facilities.

If your biggest concern is the insurance the yellow sticker doesn’t require you to get commercial insurance.

In fact I BELIEVE your standard insurance allows you to get paid for occasional trips within VERY SPECIFIC limits.

[c0608524]

Called insurance today – you two are right, it doesn’t effect my payments. Good to know!

[Scribbler]

Is this just an Ontario thing, or do other provinces have similar rules?

[Tiger_Paws]

[QUOTE=Scribbler;8785743]
Is this just an Ontario thing, or do other provinces have similar rules?[/QUOTE]

Transportation and licencing fall under provincial jurisdiction, so each province would have its own rules, regulations and requirements.

If you are traveling through a province that is not your own home province you must adhere to the rules and regulations of that jurisdiction.

[demidq]

A few years ago, the OPP staked out the exit from a horse show and did a permit/sticker blitz. Major consternation as lots of people were not in compliance! I wouldn’t risk it.

[BigMama1]

My friend got dinged big time pulling her 4-horse gooseneck with a Ram 3500. She had the commercial sticker but didn’t realize the needed to also have the CVOR certificate to just haul her own horses. IIRC it was a steep fine.

[cherham]

Hey demidq if that was the Palgrave Show Grounds you are referring to I was working that shift. You would not believe how many drivers were hauling full size HUGE rigs with a G licence. Yep you can bet those trucks and trailers were parked immediately! And some of those trailers were from big time show barns. Pretty embarrassing watching all the horses walk back onto the show grounds to wait until a properly licensed driver showed up. Too bad guys! And you bet a 2 horse needs a safety sticker. Every year. Don’t get caught everyone. The law is there to protect everyone. Oh and another little secret. If you are hauling a horse trailer you better pull into the MTO weigh scales too. They will more then likely wiave you through with just a 2 horse and pick up but sometimes not. Don’t make them come chasing after you…never a nice scene.

[demidq]

It also happened outside Mohawk Raceway. Same deal, lots of fines, lots of people and horses waiting for rides!

[c0608524]

This is EXACTLY what I’m worried about - a steep fine and stranded. It DOES suck my truck is a year old and I have to get it safetied too, but I understand the law is there to protect anyone.

[banmharcach]

If you are going to be over the 4500kg (truck + trailer+horse+gear) then you also need to pay additional $$ for licensing --weight range of 5000-6000kg or 6000-7000kg for example.

You may be exempted from CVOR requirements IF it is only for personal use. (Otherwise, log books etc come into play)

Annual yellow safety sticker good for everyone’s sake on the road–at least the workings of the truck/trailer will have seen an inspection in recent history.

[PDDT]

The yellow sticker is cheap, means your truck and trailer (there are actually two yellow stickers you need, one for each) gets safetied each year. I did it when I had a two horse. I was never stopped, but it was one less worry each show.

[SecondInCommand]

I’m reading the back of my G class Ontario licence, which says I am permitted to have a maximum combined weight of 11,000 kg, and a maximum towed weight of 4600 kg.

Where is everyone getting these 4500 combined kg stats from?

[banmharcach]

[QUOTE=SecondInCommand;8790059]
I’m reading the back of my G class Ontario licence, which says I am permitted to have a maximum combined weight of 11,000 kg, and a maximum towed weight of 4600 kg.

Where is everyone getting these 4500 combined kg stats from?[/QUOTE]

The 4500 combined truck/trailer/contents refers to truck license plate fees not the driver’s license. A pickup truck on its own won’t likely exceed that weight and thus you pay a similar license fee as a car. If it has “commercial” plates (black+white) then they used to issue a small pink sticker for the front plate noting personal use—these are ones that got nabbed for being overweight if they had a loaded/heavy 2 horse. (Pickup+ aluminum bumper pull trailer + 2 small ponies +gear may still squeak under the scale).
Many of the 4 horse truck/trailer combos though will be heavy enough to warrant a class A driver’s license not just the G.

[c0608524]

[QUOTE=SecondInCommand;8790059]
I’m reading the back of my G class Ontario licence, which says I am permitted to have a maximum combined weight of 11,000 kg, and a maximum towed weight of 4600 kg.

Where is everyone getting these 4500 combined kg stats from?[/QUOTE]

http://www.mto.gov.on.ca/english/trucks/commercial-vehicle-safety-requirements.shtml

[SecondInCommand]

Thanks for the link, @c06! The MTO website is notoriously confusing, but I think one of the things that is happening here is we’re conflating the safety sticker with commercial designations.

You need a safety sticker if your gross combined weight exceeds 4500 kg:

Trucks, trailers and converter dollies, alone or in combination, with a total gross weight, registered gross weight or manufacturer’s gross vehicle weight rating of more than 4,500 kg require an annual inspection.

You’re considered a commercial operator automatically if your vehicle alone exceeds 4500 kg:

A commercial motor vehicle is:
•a truck or highway tractor with a gross weight or registered gross weight of more than 4,500 kilograms (kg)

Having a safety sticker does not turn you into a commercial operator.

[banmharcach]

see also the answers to FAQ 15+16 here:
http://www.mto.gov.on.ca/english/trucks/commercial-vehicle-faq.shtml#a15

as the trailer doesn’t have an annual licensing fee, if into the heavier categories, then you need to pay for a greater “registered gross weight” (and if that is over 4500kg, then the mto office will want a CVOR unless for personal use only)

[fanfayre]

BC has something similar; requires an ‘endorsement’ on the typical Class 5 licence