Recreational Vehicle Information
For Drivers of Motor Homes, Truck Campers and House Trailers

Driver Licences

Air brake endorsement (Z endorsement)

Any person who drives a motor home or a truck fitted with an air brake system or an air-over-hydraulic brake system is required to have a Z endorsement on their driver's licence.

Exemption A person receiving driving instructions in a vehicle equipped with air brakes is not required to have a Z endorsement if the driving instructions are for the purposes of obtaining a Z endorsement. The person providing the driving instructions is required to have a Z endorsement.

Accompanying driver for the purposes of instruction

• A Class G driver may drive a Class D truck, motor home, motor home-trailer combination or truck-trailer combination, and
• A Class G or D driver may drive a Class A motor home-trailer or truck-trailer combination, if the driver is accompanied by a person with the appropriate class of licence for the vehicle or combination of vehicles and is occupying a seat beside the driver for the purpose of giving him or her instruction.

Type of vehicle that may be used for a driver licence road test

If a vehicle or combination of vehicles, as mentioned above, requires the driver to hold a Class "D" or Class "A" driver's licence, the ministry may permit such a vehicle or combination of vehicles to be used to conduct the tests, including the road tests required by the ministry. Restrictions may apply if the driver intends to, or is obtaining a higher class of licence to drive a truck for commercial purposes.

On April 24, 2008, the Ministry of Transportation announced the introduction of a new restrictive licence condition "R" for Class A drivers. This new licence restriction will be applied to drivers who pass a Class A road test using a smaller truck-trailer combination, such as a pick-up truck pulling a large recreational, horse, or utility trailer, and prohibit them from driving larger more complex tractor-trailers.

For more information, please visit the MTO website.

In order to receive a full Class A licence, applicants must bring a tractor-trailer for the road test that has all the following:

• a tractor equipped with a manual transmission;
• a fifth wheel coupling;
• a single trailer having an overall length of 45 feet; and,
• a full air brake system on both the tractor and the trailer.

Applicants who pass their Class A road test using a vehicle configuration that does not meet the requirements for a full privilege Class A driver's licence will receive the new restrictive Class A licence condition and will be prohibited from operating:

• a motor vehicle pulling double trailers; and
• a motor vehicle pulling a trailer with air-brakes.

It is important to note that drivers with the restricted Class A licence will not be allowed to provide driver instruction on a vehicle requiring full Class A driving privileges. Vehicle owners are also prohibited from allowing a person to operate a motor vehicle in contravention of a licence condition.

Manufacturer's vehicle ratings which are not appropriate for determining class of driver's licence

The following ratings are not used to determine the class of driver's licence required: manufacturer's vehicle weight ratings; vehicle weight ratings; gross vehicle weight ratings; unloaded vehicle weight ratings; net carrying capacity ratings; gross combination weight ratings; sleeping capacity weight ratings; axle weight ratings; and trailer permit empty weights.

The empty weight indicated on a trailer's permit is not a certified weight and may have been provided to the ministry prior to the addition of equipment and accessories by secondary manufacturers or previous owners. An empty weight on a permit should not be relied upon in determining that a higher class of driver's licence is not required, that a vehicle does not need brakes or that a vehicle will not weigh more than a particular amount when loaded with a known weight. Drivers should always determine the actual weight of the vehicles if they wish to ensure that they hold the proper class of driver's licence for the vehicle or that they are otherwise in compliance with laws or regulations in relation to vehicles for which an empty weight is indicated on the permit.