im Axle Specialists

Towing laws

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Towing laws

Right this needs straightened out.

Firstly there are many metothods of towing.

Tow rope or Solid bar
Both of these towing methods requires a driver to use the controls of the towed car and as driving in law is completed when using the steering and/or brakes the towed car needs INS/MOT/TAX the driver also needs a valid full UK Driving licence.

A Frame or Dolly
When using these forms of towing device the towed car is driverless and is no longer classed as a car so it does not require INS/MOT/TAX however it does require to be road worthy in the same catagory that a trailer would be in i.e legal tyres that touch the road and also mudgaurds fitted etc. It's also now the responsibility of the towing car to be suitably insured to cover the vehicle (trailor) it is towing.

Weight limits (this also includes trailers) are also now brought into the equasion. The towing car will have a gross train weight (this weight is stamped on the chassis plate, see pic below)....this includes the weight of the towing car, the towed car and the towing device. Exceeding this weight is an offence. Believe it or not the train weight of a Fiat Panda 4x4 is 2100kg so 2.1 metric tones :eek: The plate also includes maximum weight limits for axles etc

The maximum weight a car can tow without a braking device fitted is 750Kg that includes the A frame, dolly and trailor. However if the A frame, Dolly and trailor are fitted with a braking device the maximum weight you can tow is the gross train weight minus the weight of the towing car.

Hope this clears up some misunderstandings
chassis plate1.JPG
 
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Who makes these f***ing laws anyway? :mad:

I've got to move my Capri all of 5 miles tomorrow, it has to tax/MoT/insurance as it's been sat in a mate's gf's garage for months and now she wants it gone as she's no longer his gf :rolleyes: when we move it there we dragged it behind another car, as far as we knew this was completely legal an needed nothing more than a bit of rope, hazard lights and big "ON TOW" sign.

I'll be damned if I'm paying some bloke with a truck £50+ to shift it, and like most people I can't exactly pull a trailer and car with towbar out my backside at a moment's notice.

Hell, I'm sorely tempted to whack the lights and bumper back on and drive it home under cover of darkness at 4am, but knowing my luck some bored peeler would pull me over.
 
or better yet, you could be involved in accident of someone elses making, and be blamed for it as you had no tax/mot/ins...at the end of the day, it's down to yourself, forewarned is forearmed.

of course since your so brave, why wait till 4am? do it in broad daylight, past a police station, in fact tell them you are doing it, after all you're not fussed are you? either way stop whining about legislation you have no control over, and get on with the job in hand....
 
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JonnyBoy said:
Who makes these f***ing laws anyway? :mad:

I've got to move my Capri all of 5 miles tomorrow, it has to tax/MoT/insurance as it's been sat in a mate's gf's garage for months and now she wants it gone as she's no longer his gf :rolleyes: when we move it there we dragged it behind another car, as far as we knew this was completely legal an needed nothing more than a bit of rope, hazard lights and big "ON TOW" sign.

I'll be damned if I'm paying some bloke with a truck £50+ to shift it, and like most people I can't exactly pull a trailer and car with towbar out my backside at a moment's notice.

Hell, I'm sorely tempted to whack the lights and bumper back on and drive it home under cover of darkness at 4am, but knowing my luck some bored peeler would pull me over.
Click to expand...

Or do what i did contact Anchor tow bars, they send one out for about £55 with all the electrics and everything you need, fit it yourself to keep costs low. Wait on ebay for a cheap Braked A frame or Dolly as a Capri is over 750kg and then you can tow till your hearts content. You could maybe even start your own recovery buisness.
 
JonnyBoy said:
Who makes these f***ing laws anyway? :mad:

I've got to move my Capri all of 5 miles tomorrow, it has to tax/MoT/insurance as it's been sat in a mate's gf's garage for months and now she wants it gone as she's no longer his gf :rolleyes: when we move it there we dragged it behind another car, as far as we knew this was completely legal an needed nothing more than a bit of rope, hazard lights and big "ON TOW" sign.

I'll be damned if I'm paying some bloke with a truck £50+ to shift it, and like most people I can't exactly pull a trailer and car with towbar out my backside at a moment's notice.

Hell, I'm sorely tempted to whack the lights and bumper back on and drive it home under cover of darkness at 4am, but knowing my luck some bored peeler would pull me over.
Click to expand...


Yeah it'll be a right hoot, go for it :p or if you want someone to take it on a "joyride" to yours ;)
 
JonnyBoy said:
Who makes these f***ing laws anyway? :mad:

I've got to move my Capri all of 5 miles tomorrow, it has to tax/MoT/insurance as it's been sat in a mate's gf's garage for months and now she wants it gone as she's no longer his gf :rolleyes: when we move it there we dragged it behind another car, as far as we knew this was completely legal an needed nothing more than a bit of rope, hazard lights and big "ON TOW" sign.

I'll be damned if I'm paying some bloke with a truck £50+ to shift it, and like most people I can't exactly pull a trailer and car with towbar out my backside at a moment's notice.

Hell, I'm sorely tempted to whack the lights and bumper back on and drive it home under cover of darkness at 4am, but knowing my luck some bored peeler would pull me over.
Click to expand...

Many people seem to think that because a law is inconvenient for them then it must be wrong. They seem unable to understand that laws are passed for the protection of EVERYONE. YOU might think it is perfectly ok to tow an unroadworthy vehicle on the public highway, but the person behind you who might be at risk if anything goes wrong will probably think differently. Now, put YOURSELF behind someone towing an unroadworthy vehicle and imagine what you'd feel if something happend with this towed vehicle that caused you to have an accident. Wouldn't you be pissed off at an avoidable accident being caused? Wouldn't you be even more pissed off that you couldn't claim because the towed vehicle wasn't covered by insurance? Wouldn't you then demand that something ought to be done to stop this from happening?

There's always two sides to a story, and there's always many reasons why a law is brought into use. Just because it incoveniences you doesn't make it wrong. And remember as well, the Police don't make the laws. Their job is to enforce the laws that are passed by Governments and to not question them. They are law enforcers not law makers.
 
Alan.D said:
Right this needs straightened out.

Firstly there are many metothods of towing.

Tow rope or Solid bar
Both of these towing methods requires a driver to use the controls of the towed car and as driving in law is completed when using the steering and/or brakes the towed car needs INS/MOT/TAX the driver also needs a valid full UK Driving licence.

A Frame or Dolly
When using these forms of towing device the towed car is driverless and is no longer classed as a car so it does not require INS/MOT/TAX however it does require to be road worthy in the same catagory that a trailer would be in i.e legal tyres that touch the road and also mudgaurds fitted etc. It's also now the responsibility of the towing car to be suitably insured to cover the vehicle (trailor) it is towing.

Weight limits (this also includes trailers) are also now brought into the equasion. The towing car will have a gross train weight (this weight is stamped on the chassis plate, see pic below)....this includes the weight of the towing car, the towed car and the towing device. Exceeding this weight is an offence. Believe it or not the train weight of a Fiat Panda 4x4 is 2100kg so 2.1 metric tones :eek: The plate also includes maximum weight limits for axles etc

The maximum weight a car can tow without a braking device fitted is 750Kg that includes the A frame, dolly and trailor. However if the A frame, Dolly and trailor are fitted with a braking device the maximum weight you can tow is the gross train weight minus the weight of the towing car.

Hope this clears up some misunderstandings
View attachment 29052
Click to expand...


This is different to what the DVLA told me when I asked them. They said that NO wheels could be in contact with the road. ie the towed vehicle had to be on a trailer if it had no valid MOT and tax. Or trade plates of course,.
 
In fairness, I'm not really that bothered, as I have access to a car trailer anyway.

BUT it is useful to know the legal position of stuff, before you get caught out.
 
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