Law On Towing Goes Above and Beyond Just Driving

The UK law on towing goes above and beyond just driving down the road with the trailer in tow, as a political supporter from Argyll and Bute was recently reminded. Towing laws also apply to parking. Simply put, there are some places trailer owners are not allowed to park their vehicles. Parking in such a spot is likely to result in a ticket, anyway.

According to the Press and Journal, Bill Hanbury hooked up his trailer with a campaign sign attached and drove to Oban in the hope of attending a rally scheduled by Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson. The small utility trailer was affixed with an A-frame sign that read ‘Ruth Davidson for a Strong Opposition’. Hanbury parked trailer, walked away, and was later given a parking ticket.

Hanbury says he displayed the required tickets in both the car and on the trailer only to return and find the one affixed to the trailer had been removed. He attached a second ticket to the trailer, and that one was removed as well. When he came back the third time, he found a parking ticket waiting for him.

According to Hanbury, he plans to simply pay the fine and forget about it. He says it’s too much trouble to try to track down who removed the tickets or to contest the fine in court. The lesson in all of this is clear: wardens are not afraid to issue parking tickets to cars with trailers that are illegally parked. We will give Mr Hanbury the benefit of the doubt in the knowledge that there are plenty of other trailer owners who make no attempt to do things legally.

Trailer Safety for Everyone

We cannot stress enough that the law on towing is designed to make trailer ownership and use safe for everyone on the roads. Although that may not seem like the point with parking tickets, it really is. Having a trailer in a car park, parked in an inappropriate spot, can make it difficult for emergency vehicles to get through in the event they are called to handle something. Inappropriately parked trailers can also be a hazard to people trying to make their way through a car park where they cannot be seen by other drivers attempting to reverse out of a space.

It is clear that the law on towing addresses licencing issues for safety reasons. Towing a trailer is considerably different to driving down the road with just a car alone. Without proper training and experience, trailer towing can be a dangerous proposition that is ripe for accidents. By requiring trailer owners to have a B+E entitlement, at the very least, the government ensures that trailer owners get the necessary training to be safe.

The HGV Training Centre encourages you to know the law on towing before you embark. If you have little to no experience, we also invite you to call us and sign up for one of our towing courses.

Sources:

Press and Journal – https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/news/highlands/908449/campaign-trailer-issued-with-parking-ticket/