When you take your car and trailer test, one of the things you must demonstrate to the examiner is that you understand the proper loading of your vehicles. That was apparently lost on a Worcestershire man who was pulled over by the police on the M5 for towing an unsafe load. We will do our best to describe the situation here, but seeing the published photos is necessary to understand the full impact of what happened.
According to The Mirror, the driver in question was travelling along the motorway during rush hour on October 1 (2015). His red Range Rover was towing a small utility trailer to which was strapped a rusted portion of an old farm feeder. Nothing would have been out of the ordinary had the trailer been large enough to comfortably handle the load. But the utility trailer in question was something more likely to be used in a garden with a mechanical lawn mower. It certainly should never have been on the road with such a heavy load attached.
Pictures show the large metal structure attached to the trailer with a few straps. A general knowledge of physics suggests that the load would have managed just fine under normal conditions. The problem was the size of the trailer. Had one of the straps failed, the trailer was not large enough or heavy enough to continue containing the load. A simple shift of the structure would have tipped the trailer over and sent the entire thing crashing onto the roadway. Property would have been damaged; lives could have been lost.
The Central Motorway Police Group was so shocked by what they saw that they took to Twitter after the incident in an attempt to illustrate the absurdity of the situation. Their comments, followed by others that began appearing once the photos were published, make it clear that the driver of the Range Rover was not considered highly intelligent by his motoring peers. We will not repeat what some of the comments said in order to maintain some decorum.
There is no way for us to know whether or not the Worcestershire driver’s actions were deliberate or just due to ignorance. But the story is a good reminder that towing a trailer is more than just steering and braking. Towing a trailer involves a long list of important things that need to be considered before one ever gets on the road. Matching tow vehicles and trailers with the size and weight of loads is right at the top of the list.
When we train students to prepare for the car and trailer test, we address weight and size issues. We teach them how to correctly match tow vehicle with their trailers and how to determine what is a safe load to carry. These are things drivers need to know in order to pass the car and trailer test. The Worcestershire driver failed his test, at least on October 1.
Sources:
Mirror – https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/twitter-users-brand-driver-braindead-6584370
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