Mirrors on heavy commercial vehicles

Class VI mirrors must be fitted to all commercial vehicles over 7,500 kg regardless of their age under S.I. No. 457 of 2011 with effect from 01 October 2012.  

In certain vehicles where the driver has a clear view of the area in front of the vehicle a class VI mirror may not be required e.g., if the driver seat and cab are lower to the ground than a normal HCV the front blind spot may be sufficiently small enough so that an additional mirror is not required. If your vehicle requires a class VI mirror see HCV Manual for further guidance.

Yes. Since 1 January 2013 failure to have HCVs with a design gross vehicle weight of over 7,500 kg fitted with a class VI or cyclops front mirror will result in a fail item at the periodic roadworthiness test. See our HCV Manual.

See HCV Manual in Mirrors section explaining angle, field of vision and adjustment.

No. The regulation governing the positioning of cyclops mirrors S.I. No. 457 of 2011 only applies to Irish registered trucks. It does not apply to foreign trucks travelling in Ireland.

Many commercial vehicles e.g., trucks, buses etc. have large blind spots due to their sheer size and design. BSD's are specialist technologies which can be built into such vehicles to detect the presence of vulnerable road users i.e., pedestrians and cyclists and subsequently warn the driver.

General Safety Regulation (GSR) 2019/2144 came into force on 6 July 2022. In addition to being equipped with existing systems, from 2026 changes to cab design for trucks will see improved direct vision to better see cyclists and pedestrian to reduce blind spots in front of and to the side of the driver.

New General Safety Regulation (2019/2144) which came into force on 6th of July 2022 applies to N2 category vehicles with a GVW exceeding 8,000kg and to all N3 category vehicles which requires the fitment of a blind spot information system which must operate when the vehicle is stationary and up to vehicle speeds of 30km/h.