Commercial Driver’s License Exemption for RV Transporters Renewed

In 2015, the RV Industry Association successfully petitioned the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) for exemption from the Class A and B commercial driver’s license (CDL) requirements for the transport of newly produced RVs. The FMCSA renewed this exemption in 2017 until April 6, 2022.

Today, the FMCSA published its notice renewing this exemption for another 5 years, until April 6, 2027. The renewal is retroactive to April 6, 2022. This exemption is restricted to employees of driveaway-towaway companies, RV manufacturers, and RV dealers transporting RVs between the manufacturing site and dealer location and for movements prior to first sale. Drivers covered by the exemption will not be required to hold a CDL when transporting RVs with an actual vehicle weight not exceeding 26,000 pounds or a combination of RV trailer/tow vehicle with the actual weight of the towed unit not exceeding 10,000 pounds and the gross combined weight not exceeding 26,000 pounds.

Drivers operating under this exemption must comply with the following terms and conditions:

1. The drivers and motor carriers must comply with all other applicable Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (49 CFR part 350-359);
2. The drivers must be able to provide the exemption document to enforcement officials; and
3. The drivers must be in possession of a valid state driver’s license.

This action helps alleviate the continuing commercial driver shortage, which is only projected to get worse and could create unnecessary delays in the delivery of RVs to consumers.

For more information, please contact Samantha Rocci at srocci@rvia.org.