PRESS INFORMATION - FROM BINZ UK

Hoops or Loopholes?

The issue of the legality of limousines is something that most funeral directors have never really had to worry about. Technically their limousines should have hackney carriage plates, but most UK councils are happy to test the vehicles and allow their use as funeral cars without showing their plates.

However, in recent years the UK has become inundated with American style stretch limousines which not only stretch the chassis but also the law - and their operation is said by the Police to be used as a front for further questionable practices - a browse on Google shows that this is a phenomenon often imported from the USA along with the vehicles.

This has led to questions in parliament, discussions by ACPO - Association of Chief police officers, and a great deal of publicity in the national and regional press. It is clear that the legality of limousines is under question - something that operators of funeral fleets must surely wish to distance themselves from.

The creation of a limousine - or hearse for that matter - has, since the adoption of the monocoque chassis,  been essentially one of cutting a car in two, inserting some extended framework and additional body panels and putting the car back on the road. A practice which in other circumstances would be frowned upon by the VCA, insurers and road safety bodies. However, unless a car is de-registered it is quite possible to carry out the above practice and put the car back on the road with its original documentation, without there being any official testing of the modified structure, not even an MoT test. 

There is one car, at least, on the UK market that does not make use of this "loophole" in vehicle certification, that is the six door Binz limousine and the same company's matching hearse models. 

These Mercedes-Benz E-Class extended chassis vehicles are created from a fresh body shell direct from Stuttgart, and are constructed using techniques, components and know-how developed in close liaison with Mercedes-Benz's own engineering teams. The result is an end product whose structural integrity, safety systems and on-board electronics reflect not only the changed dynamics of a longer and heavier vehicle, but one that also has its own unique VIN number and comes certified with a Whole Vehicle Type Approval certificate of conformity for use throughout Europe. 

Because that's what the words 'Type Approval' stand for: a guarantee for an operator that every vehicle that manufacturer builds, continues to meet its original test and design criteria. So, while others may jump through loopholes in the law, it is Binz who jumps through hoops to meet the required standards of safety and legality.

ENDS

Image caption: "Binz already jumps through the legal hoops, so you don't have to"

Editors' contact:	Ewan Scott 	Aardvark Associates tel. 01484 864 520 
(mob. 07951 963 433) or 01308 897 911

Company contacts:			Binz UK  tel: 0118 9758 999
					

Please note that this document is for information only and is non-contractural;
both Aardvark Associates and Binz UK - Nilsson Ltd. decline all liability in the case of omissions or errors.