Impounded foreign coach illustrates care needed on overseas work

Coach companies carrying out occasional international trips from and to the UK, both domestic operators and those based elsewhere, have been advised to closely follow laws governing such journeys after a foreign-registered coach was impounded by DVSA for alleged breaches brought the matter to prominence.

Although sometimes described as ‘cabotage’, DVSA notes how no such offence exists for PSVs. Instead, from a domestic point of view, it is termed as non-UK vehicles carrying out domestic carriage. From 1 April 2025, EU-based coach operators can no longer undertake such duties here.

The impounded coach is the first such seizure by DVSA. It has told routeone that since the start of 2026, no reports have been received of overseas coaches breaching the domestic carriage rule. Trade body RHA and transport legal specialist Backhouse Jones both advise that if such activity is seen, it should be reported to DVSA.

Impounding in UK likely if coach previously caught

DVSA says that if a foreign-registered PSV is caught carrying out domestic carriage in the UK, it can be penalised for not running under an O-Licence.

Powers are otherwise limited through no scope to report the operator concerned to the Traffic Commissioner, although other offences may be detected that can be dealt with through fixed penalties or prohibition.

If a coach found carrying out illegal domestic carriage has already received a penalty for that offence, it may be impounded “because the operator should already be aware of the legal requirements,” a DVSA spokesperson says. The agency’s response to reports is based on the seriousness and frequency of allegations.

Illegal carriage less common but still occurring, operators believe

Several individuals who have been in the coach industry for a long time agree that illegal carriage here by foreign-registered coaches is much rarer than it once was. One in Scotland recalls summers where those vehicles would camp out for the season, with drivers working seven days per week and little hint of planned maintenance.

RHA Operations Manager – Coach Sector Andy Warrender notes that he has received some reports from operator members that the practice still occurs, although nothing has been forthcoming for some time.

That aside, Mr Warrender advises that there is “a lot of misinformation” about domestic and cross-border carriage by foreign-registered coaches and the Interbus Agreement that governs it. Not all that appears to be illegal may be so, he adds.

“It is permissible for an EU-based operator to pick up a group in the UK and undertake a tour in the UK that then extends into the EU, where it concludes, or to do that in reverse,” he explains. “So it is not [automatically] illegal for them to pick up or set down groups here.” The same applies to UK operators in Europe.

“Against this background, legal activities can be misconstrued, and so while perfectly legitimate operations can be mistaken, it also makes genuine illegal operations more difficult to spot.” Use of an EU-registered coach to carry out a transfer from Heathrow into London, for example, is different, and is plainly illegal.

One operator highlights out-and-back ski tours from the UK as vulnerable to operation with vehicles registered elsewhere, noting how the recent impounded coach underlines that.

“However, the ski market has shrunk considerably in the last few years, and prices have dropped as a result,” they note. “I do not want to run ski work at low rates. If [foreign] operators are prepared to do so, good luck to them.”

Take advice on Interbus application if in any doubt

The Interbus Agreement is complicated and can be difficult to understand, Backhouse Jones Legal Director James Backhouse says. The law firm regularly gets questions from UK coach operators about Interbus. He advises that if uncertainty exists, specialist advice must be taken before the trip departs.

Beyond the established case of an out-and-back itinerary with the same group from the territory where the operator is based, Interbus provides for  various other journeys.

One made laden from the operator’s own nation into a “contracting party,” as countries where the operator is not based are known by Interbus, and with the vehicle returning empty are permitted. The reciprocal approach is also legal, as are other uncommon movements that can involve UK military servicepeople training in a foreign country.

“The long and short of it is that [closed] door tours are straightforward, as are one-way trips out and then back with the same group, with unladen journeys in between,” he continues.

“Thereafter, it is complicated, and it is no surprise that European operators fall foul of the rules in the UK, and UK operators fall foul of the rules in the EU.” Misunderstanding of the law can be a problem, and he adds that specialist operations can fall foul if they are connected to other activities such as cycling, walking, or canoeing.

Mr Backhouse says that Backhouse Jones rarely hears complaints about EU operators breaching Interbus in the UK, and believes that DVSA is “quite robust” in enforcement.

Caution needed over group makeup to avoid difficulties

A permitting regime is provided for by Interbus, Mr Backhouse continues. It allows a business to apply to carry out activities that are not ‘liberalised’ under the agreement. The UK and other contracting parties will have arrangements to grant those permits.

“One UK operator contacted the permit authority here, which then spoke with the permit authority in the country where passengers were to be collected. It confirmed that it was happy the journey met one of the exemptions and was lawful. That was confirmed in writing, giving significant comfort to the operator,” Mr Backhouse adds.

Sometimes, reorganisation of how journeys are undertaken can also avoid a breach, he continues.

Mr Warrender advises care over makeup of the travelling group when operating under Interbus. It allows round-trip and one-way closed-door journeys, but does not allow ‘mix and match’ of groups, “even between those travelling as part of the same group but on different vehicles.”

The RHA coach chief notes how Interbus requires a passenger manifest, and that only those individuals listed should be on the vehicle during the journey in question. “We are aware of some ‘bending’ of the rules to suit the desires of groups, but operators run the risk of the same fate awaiting them as the recent [impounding] case here,” he warns.