The Road Vehicles (Type-Approval) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2025

The Secretary of State makes these Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by Article 5(8) of Regulation (EU) 2015/758 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2015 concerning type-approval requirements for the deployment of the eCall in-vehicle system based on 112 service (“Regulation (EU) 2015/758”)1.The Secretary of State has consulted with representative organisations in accordance with Article 8(3) of Regulation (EU) 2015/758.

1. Citation, commencement and extent (1) These Regulations may be cited as the Road Vehicles (Type-Approval) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2025. (2) These Regulations come into force on 28th July 2025. (3) These Regulations extend to England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

2. Interpretation In these Regulations— “Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/79” means Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/79 of 12 September 2016 establishing detailed technical requirements and test procedures for the GB type-approval of motor vehicles with respect to their 112-based eCall in-vehicles systems, of 112-based eCall in-vehicle separate technical units and components and supplementing and amending Regulation (EU) 2015/758 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to the exemptions and applicable standards2; “Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/79 as it has effect in EU law” means Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/79 of 12 September 2016 establishing detailed technical requirements and test procedures for the EC type-approval of motor vehicles with respect to their 112-based eCall in-vehicles systems, of 112-based eCall in-vehicle separate technical units and components and supplementing and amending Regulation (EU) 2015/758 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to the exemptions and applicable standards as it applies under the law of the European Union3 on the date that the Road Vehicles (Type-Approval) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2025 come into force.

3. Amendment of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/79 (1) Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/79 is amended as follows. (2) In Article 5 (requirements and test procedures for GB type-approval of motor vehicles with regard to the installation of 112-based eCall in-vehicle systems)— (a) in paragraph 2— (i) for “shall have to”, substitute “must”; (ii) for “to”, in the last place it occurs, substitute “must”; (b) after paragraph 2, insert— “2A. Where the motor vehicle is fitted with a type of 112-based eCall in-vehicle STU that has been approved in accordance with Article 7 of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/79 as it has effect in EU law, the vehicle and its systems must also pass the tests laid down in Annexes II, III and V of this Regulation, and must comply with all relevant requirements laid down in those Annexes.”; (c) in paragraph 3— (i) for “shall have to”, substitute “must”; (ii) for “to”, in the last place it occurs, substitute “must”; (d) after paragraph 3, insert— “3A. Where the 112-based eCall in-vehicle system of the motor vehicle comprises one or more components that have been type-approved in accordance with Article 6 of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/79 as it has effect in EU law, the vehicle and its system must also pass the tests laid down in Annexes I to VIII of this Regulation and must comply with all relevant requirements laid down in those Annexes. The assessment of whether the system complies with those requirements may however partly be based on the results of the tests referred to in Article 6(3) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/79 as it has effect in EU law.”; (e) after paragraph 3A, insert— “4. GB type-approvals referred to in paragraph 1 that are granted before 1 January 2027 must be extended in accordance with the procedure laid down in Annex X.”; (3) After Annex IX (classes of vehicles referred to in Article 2), insert— “ANNEX X Procedure for the extension of GB type-approvals granted in accordance with this Regulation to 112-based eCall in-vehicle systems operating over circuit-switched mobile networks 1.This Annex applies for the purposes of extending GB type-approval of 112-based eCall in-vehicle systems.
4. A vehicle which meets the requirements in paragraph 3 is exempt from the requirement to comply with Article 5(1) so far as it relates to Annex II (full-scale impact assessment) and Annex III (crash-resistance of audio equipment).
5. The requirements referred to in paragraph 2 are as follows. 3.1. The extension of GB type-approval is for modifications made to a component of an eCall in-vehicle system which is designed to facilitate or enable hands-free voice communications between vehicle occupants and an operator. 3.2. The modifications to which the extension relates do not impact any other component of an eCall in-vehicle system.
6. Where an extension of GB type-approval is granted in accordance with this Annex, differences between the modified eCall in-vehicle system and the eCall in-vehicle system as originally type-approved must be documented and explained to the technical service and the appropriate authority.
7. Where a crash test is required for the purpose of extending the GB type-approval of a component of an eCall in-vehicle system other than a component which is designed to facilitate or enable hands-free voice communications between vehicle occupants and an operator, the technical service shall conduct a full-scale impact test assessment in accordance with Annex II and an audio equipment crash resistance assessment in accordance with Annex III.”

Signed by authority of the Secretary of State for Transport Lilian Greenwood Parliamentary Under Secretary of State Department for Transport 2nd July 2025

Explanatory Note (This note is not part of the Regulations) These Regulations amend Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/79. Regulation 3 permits EU approved eCall components and separate technical units to be treated in the same way as GB approved equivalents, enabling exemption from certain tests that would otherwise have to be carried out. Regulation 3 also makes provision for extending the GB type-approval of a vehicle with regard to the installation of a 112-based eCall in-vehicle system, subject to the requirements in new Annex X. The net costs imposed on business, the voluntary sector and the public sector by these Regulations have been assessed as being less than £10m in any year and therefore a full impact assessment has not been prepared. An Explanatory Memorandum and a de minimis assessment have been prepared and are available alongside this instrument at www.legislation.gov.uk. Hard copies may be obtained from the Department for Transport, Great Minster House, 33 Horseferry Road, London SW1P 4DR.