Does anyone know the exact legal implications of towing a trailer that takes you over the limitations (trailer weight limit, gross train weight etc.) in the car handbook. I know there's advice about trailer weight not exceeding 85% of the kerb weight, and such like. And I wouldn't be surprised if exceeding the handbook limits invalidated the insurance.
But I'm interested in whether it specifically contravenes any law [1], maybe something under Construction and Use. And if the manufacturer's spec isn't a hard legal limit, what is?
GJD
[1] Not because I want to tow a 2 ton trailer with my car - it's just that I've never found a consensus amongst all the people I know who tow gliders around.
|
GJD,
Try a search on this site under "Trailer weights", here is something I posted last year...
"I've just laid my hands on the statement of law as defined by the Department for Transport.....
In the case of trailers less than 3500kg maximum laden weight, there is not any specified relationship in UK law between the weight of the towing vehicle and the weight of the trailer.
For motor vehicles used for the carriage of passengers, and comprising not more than eight seats in addition to the driver's seat, the maximum permissible trailer weight is quoted by the vehicle manufacturer and if this is exceeded it is possible that the Courts or Insurance Companies may take the view that this constitutes a danger."
Seems clear enough.
MM
|
MM just about says it all, but of course there are other rules about type approval of towbars (for S-reg and more recent vehicles) which include noseweight limits etc.
And if the police wanted to push something about unsafe loading, even if it was within the theoretical towing capacity of the car (which is based on a very spurious test), I'm sure they would. Rightly so.
Terry
|
|
|
MM
Thanks for that. To my eternal shame I completely forgot to do a search before I asked. As I say, I have no intention of towing something the car can't handle. After all, if the trailer takes control (and a 9 metre long box can easily try to) it's me that ends up upside down and dead.
What I was wondering was whether the courts would say "You exceeded the manufacturer's limit, that's clearly foolish" or "You exceeded the manufacturer's limit, that directly contravenes this section of the Road Traffic Act". It seems that the former is the case.
|
|
Is 9m long legal in U.K.? I understood the maximum lenth and width towable by a normal car was 8m x 2.3m
|
Is 9m long legal in U.K.? I understood the maximum lenth and width towable by a normal car was 8m x 2.3m
Short answer: Yes.
Long answer: From memory it's an indivisible load thing. I can't cut the wings of my glider in half. Since this is an important issue for most glider trailers, I'm pretty sure its one we got right.
|
A trailer with body length (excluding drawbar) which exceeds 7m or 2.3m in width cannot legally be towed by normal car. A goods vehicle plated for more than 3500kg is needed.
However, the police do not enforce this regulation in the UK which is why "travellers" get away with towing oversized continental caravans behind their BMW's and Merc's.
Glider trailers may be legal in themselves but not when towed behind a normal car.
|
The 85% rule is more advisory than mandatory. It is something that is widely used in caravan circles.
The mandatory weights are those that are the 'plated weights' ie those shown on the manufacturers plate.
However in certain circumstances if a vehicle and trailer were involved in a serious accident and 'overweight' were to be an issue then the 85% rule could perhaps be brought into a prosecution similarly to information within the Highway Code which is mostly advisory.
It sometimes worries me when you see a standard saloon car towing a trailer with a similar sized saloon car on the back. The whole combination must be seriously out of weight limits. I think you can often go by the simple rule that if it look right it is right.
|
|
|
>A trailer with body length (excluding drawbar) which exceeds 7m or 2.3m in width cannot legally be towed by normal car. A goods vehicle plated for more than 3500kg is needed.
>However, the police do not enforce this regulation in the UK which is why "travellers" get away with towing oversized continental caravans behind their BMW's and Merc's.
Sorry to come back so belatedly on this thread. Yes I agree with both those comments. However there is an often overlooked point re insurance. I was very nearly persuaded by a dealer to buy an over wide German caravan (2.5m) using this argument. I didn?t play because it occurred to me that, even if the police don?t enforce the law, in the event of mishap my (car &/or caravan) insurance company would weasel out of any liability as I would be driving a technically illegal outfit :)
|
>A trailer with body length (excluding drawbar) which exceeds 7m or 2.3m in width cannot legally be towed by normal car. A goods vehicle plated for more than 3500kg is needed.
You don't happen to have a source for that which you can point me at do you Clear Spot?
|
GJD,
Chapter and verse...
If however the gross weight of the towing vehicle is 3.5 tonnes or less then the maximum permissible width and length are 2.3 metres and 7 metres respectively.
From Dept for Transport website at...
www.roads.dft.gov.uk/vehicle/standards/trailers/
MM
|
MM
I scoured the web for an hour yesterday evening and found that too. I also found amendment 4 to the construction and use regs (huge link - sorry)
[And unfort. we have a problem with *really* long links as it makes the page scrolling go haywire. I have broken the link. If you wish to follow it then you will need to cut and paste each bit into your web browser address line. Sorry \'bout that. Mark.]
www.hmso.gov.uk/cgi-bin/htm_hl3?URL=http://www.hms...m
&STEMMER=en&WORDS=construct us trailer length &COLOUR=Red&
STYLE=s#muscat_highlighter_first_match
which describes exclusions for a trailer \"which is constructed and normally used for the conveyance of indivisible loads of exceptional length\" [1]. Unfortunately HMSO publishes all statutory instruments from 1987 onwards and the original construction and use dates from 1986, so I can\'t [2] get the original to interpret the amendment.
GJD
[1] which is the oft quoted phrase in gliding circles
[2] without parting with £15.65 of my hard earned riches.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The max towing weight quoted by manufacturers is based not on any legal requirement, but is an industry standard. The quoted weight is based on the cars ability to make an efficient start from standstill up a 1 in 8 gradient. 1 in 8 is quite steep, so if you are going to tow along mostly level ground then most cars should be capable of exceeding their quoted maxima.
A cars ability to tow a heavy weight is not just about having a stonking engine under the bonnet though. The car should be in good condition (brakes, shocks etc). A short rear overhang & long wheelbase help stability greatly. The trailer should also be up to the job too (well maintained, four wheels, brakes in good order). Use a stabilising bar too. Car & trailer should be evenly loaded too (with just the right down force on the ball).
A friend once borrowed my SD1 V8 to tow a classic car from Nth Scotland to Coventry, some 450 miles. The quoted max trailer weight for the SD1 was 2100Kg, but the car & trailer must have weighed in at 2700 or so. Having a long wheelbase and short overhang (as well as a big V8) made these excellent tow cars, and mine did this job admirably. Later I used my Rover 827 to move the same vehicle around Coventry - again no problems.
Since there is no specific law on the matter, I don't believe you have anything to fear by exceeding manufacturers figures provided you use the right car & trailer and make sure everything is up to the job. I've seen a local LR dealer using Rover 800s to tow Discos on a trailer!!!
Not all cars are good towers - might be worth consulting caravaning magazines for recommendations on this score.
In the USA all cars come with a maximum quoted towing weight of just 1000lbs. Don't know if this is a legal thing (guess it must be - you can tow this on an unbraked trailer here).
|
Cyd is right technically, but wrong legally. Although it is not a specific offence to exceed the manufacturers towing limit, a court can use that as evidence of unsafe load. Since no other, better, technical evidence would be available, the court would convict.
The basic towing limit is set by testing the heaviest trailer that can be re-started on a 1:8.3 (12%) hill BUT the manufacturer may reduce it if there is some other limiting factor, eg chassis, engine, transmission, brakes, suspension.
The only safe advice is - don't exceed the manufacturer's towing limit.
|
|
Oughtn't the wait of any load the car may be carrying come into the equation somewhere? 85% of a maximumly-loaded car might be a lot more than of an empty one, yet its ability to pull the (maximumly loaded?) caravan would be seriously reduced.
|
|
for 'wait' read 'weight' of course. Stupid
|
|
|
Oughtn't the wait of any load the car may be carrying come into the equation somewhere? 85% of a maximumly-loaded car might be a lot more than of an empty one, yet its ability to pull the (maximumly loaded?) caravan would be seriously reduced.
On the other hand, for a given weight of trailer / caravan, the heavier the car, the less likely the trailer is to take charge of the combination. Subject to gross train weights (or whatever they're called) and the like.
Not suggesting that these two cancel out, just that the whole thing is rather complicated. I work on two principles:
Stay well within manufacturer's limits, and
If it looks wrong, it probably is wrong.
|
|
|
|
|
