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Is your tow overweight? Overweight caravans can cause a significant risk to road safety

Writer's picture: The BeagleThe Beagle

Police warn that towing is very different from everyday driving – it requires additional driving skills and safety precautions. "As a driver, you have a legal responsibility to other road users and yourself when towing a trailer, caravan or another vehicle, to drive to suit the conditions. Also, the towing vehicle, trailer and its load must meet all legal and safety requirements. You should ensure your vehicle and trailer are correctly equipped and drive your vehicle and trailer combination safely. A properly designed and fitted tow bar is essential for safe towing. The load capacity of the tow bar must be at least equal to the loaded mass of the trailer. Apart from the added legal responsibilities for drivers, towing requires more knowledge and skills than normal driving. Drivers not experienced in towing need to make sure they understand the general principles of driving with a trailer before attempting to tow in traffic or at highway speeds. Many people, particularly those towing large caravans, use a weight distribution hitch. This device transfers some of the load imposed on the tow bar ball to the front and rear suspension of the towing vehicle. The Caravan Industry of Australia have raised concerns with their members saying : "With the ever increasing number of ‘standard inclusions’ bumping the weight of Recreational Vehicles through the roof – the need for education on ratings and masses is becoming more apparent.

The buyers expectation of more ‘standard inclusions’ in their Recreational Vehicle from factory is becoming an increasingly common issue. What many fail to take into account is that the weight of these extra inclusions quickly add up and soon bring the overall weight of the RV product very close to its aggregate trailer mass (ATM) rating. This is before the user has even filled the water tanks or packed all the necessary items expected for normal use.

The weight of the caravan in relation to the tow vehicle is often overlooked. Any business selling RV products, in particular caravans, need to be aware of their obligations in terms of legal responsibility as well as overall safety. In addition, any persons giving advice regarding towing masses should always be aware that many vehicle manufacturers may stipulate specific conditions for their vehicles when used for towing. Failure to comply with these conditions may void that vehicle’s warranty, cause mechanical damage or worse, result in a vehicle accident with possible loss-of-insurance implications. Emphasis should always be stressed on the need for persons to refer to the vehicle manufacturer’s handbook before contemplating towing and even prior to the purchase of a vehicle, as the cost of additional mandatory/recommended vehicle equipment may become a buying consideration.

The suitability of the consumers tow vehicle should be assessed by the RV Product Dealership/ Distributor prior to any contract being signed. Unfortunately, many buyers are finding out that their tow vehicle is underrated either at the time of delivery or in some instances months after the fact.

Educating the consumer as to how to load their caravan correctly is another important factor in ensuring a safe towing setup. As a general rule, heavy items should be loaded down as low as possible and towards the middle, or axle line, of the caravan. Only lighter items should be stored in the overhead compartments.

Caravanners also need to be aware that fitting load levelling bars will not make a caravan any lighter. Before using any type of load levelling bars, it must be determined that the tow bar on the vehicle and the vehicle itself is strong enough to withstand the loads imposed on the system by load levelling devices. This is particularly critical when dealing with the lighter weight vehicles and bars.

Caravan Industry Association of Australia is the peak national body for the caravanning and camping industry in Australia. Our organisation’s vision is, “To lead and champion a safe, compliant and sustainable caravanning and camping industry in Australia”, with all operation pillars – marketing; research; lobbying and advocacy; compliance, accreditation and training – working towards this vision.

NOTE: Comments were TRIALED - in the end it failed as humans will be humans and it turned into a pile of merde; only contributed to by just a handful who did little to add to the conversation of the issue at hand. Anyone who would like to contribute an opinion are encouraged to send in a Letter to the Editor where it might be considered for publication

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