Towing without Brakes ?

[wavelength]

bottom line..it doesnt matter what a seller, be they business or private, writes, says or doesn't say re roadworthiness.
If it ain't and it goes away on the roads then there is, on the face of it, an offence committed by the seller..

[Andy B]

well thats the second hand boat market screwed!

[mick]

Originally Posted by mick

Whoops wrong car I used the Defender and there was no harm done and its all sorted now

This is the chap I new http://www.ntta.co.uk/news/news_details.aspx?NewsID=12
http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/5893..._Hill_tragedy/

[wavelength]

well thats the second hand boat market screwed

and the cheepie cheepie car market, Ce'st la Vie

[rocknrolla]

Originally Posted by 1978SeaRider

Hi all,

I need to drag back my Osprey from Anglesey to Preston for some tube work in a few weeks, but the brakes on the trailer are scrap. I could look at replacing the brake system. Alternatively, without sounding wreckless, I was thinking of towing it back without brakes.

It's 7.8m with a 250hp and it will be behind a range rover. I've towed it to a local dealers a few times and it didn't give me any problems.

Do you think it would be mad to risk it ?
Would it invalidate any insurance claim should I crash or be crashed into ?
Do you know the penalty involved if you get stopped by the feds or VOSA ?

Thanks in advance !

You will be snd , no over 70 son with no brakes your rig is no way 3 ton just make sure it is strapt up nice good style

[m chappelow]

Towing with an unbraked trailer is usually ok as long as you keep to the basic safe driving rules not overdoing it with speed & keeping a good distance away .
unless the laws changed you could only tow an unbraked trailer as long as the car weighed twice as much as the trailer up to a max of 750 kgs
Eg car 1000 kgs - trailer 500 kgs
car 1500 kgs - trailer 750 kgs
with a braked trailer it was weight for weight unless it was a something like a landy .


With regards to the A64 fatal crash on Whitwell hill , I used to regular deliver company boats & large yachts using both trucks and landrovers in the 70 s &. 80 s and it has always been an accident spot for caravans and trailers .

[1978SeaRider]

Thanks for all the comments guys ! Looks like I'll be renting a trailer, spending a few quid sorting mine out or getting it on a low loader !!

[Leapy]

Originally Posted by rocknrolla

You will be snd , no over 70 son with no brakes your rig is no way 3 ton just make sure it is strapt up nice good style

This is not good advice

[Poly]

Originally Posted by Leapy

This is not good advice

Its not even English!

[kerny]

Originally Posted by Poly

Its not even English!

No it's Yam Yam

[tony t]

Originally Posted by Poly

Its not even English!

I understood every word ....

[kerny]

Originally Posted by tony t

I understood every word ....

You would my friend

[captnjack]

Man its seriously messed up if a seller is liable for how the boat is moved from his property. If the trailer is not roadworthy and that fact is disclosed to the buyer, reflected in the sale price, and they then fail to bring a flat bed truck or whatever to tow it away. Or fail to repair the trailer on-site before taking it on a public road, how is this the seller's fault?
If you sell a car with bald tyres and they drive it off as-is instead of trucking it away or replacing the tyres, are you liable for that too?
Over here, as soon as the title is transferred with their signature its their responsibility.

[rocknrolla]

Originally Posted by Poly

Its not even English!

Thats as good as it gets Braveheart,and i am south of your border son, so i am English have a look at a map book son

[mister p]

Chaps, "buyer beware", once money has changed hands and as such has ownership, what the new owner does with his purchase is his problem. If he chooses to tow a trailer from your drive that has no wheels it is him that is committing the offence not the seller.
If you buy a car without an MOT and drive it home then you are liable not the seller.
An unroadworthy trailer will only let you go through civil claims against the seller only if you were informed that it was roadworthy and subsequently bought it.
If you get caught on the road dragging an illegal trailer that you've just bought then you and only you will be prosecuted.
It is the owner's/driver's responsibility to ensure that his vehicle is legal.

[Poly]

Originally Posted by captnjack

Man its seriously messed up if a seller is liable for how the boat is moved from his property. If the trailer is not roadworthy and that fact is disclosed to the buyer, reflected in the sale price, and they then fail to bring a flat bed truck or whatever to tow it away. Or fail to repair the trailer on-site before taking it on a public road, how is this the seller's fault?

s75 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 (Road Traffic Act 1988) does indeed make it illegal to supply an unroadworthy vehicle for use on the road. There are some get outs, and the rules for trade seller are slightly different from private ones but either way watching someone hook up a dodgy trailer to their car would probably ruin the defence.

If you sell a car with bald tyres and they drive it off as-is instead of trucking it away or replacing the tyres, are you liable for that too?

absolutely

I believe it used to be wavelength's job to prosecute people for this sort of stuff. However I don't know if he knows of any case where a private seller actually got prosecuted having clearly stated in an ad that it was not roadworthy?

Over here, as soon as the title is transferred with their signature its their responsibility.

I am sure this is not the major factor in this, but are you sure your system is better?

                                        Road fatalities 
                 /100k inhabs pa      / 100k vehicles      / 1Bn vehicle km

UK                3.59                        7                        5.7
USA               12.3                       15                        8.5

[mister p]

[QUOTE=Poly;493239]s75 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 (Road Traffic Act 1988) does indeed make it illegal to supply an unroadworthy vehicle for use on the road. There are some get outs, and the rules for trade seller are slightly different from private ones but either way watching someone hook up a dodgy trailer to their car would probably ruin the defence.

This is simply to have the law in words and allow it to be argued. The seller's defence would simply be that it was not intended for use on the road as they had clearly stated. The fact that the buyer turned up with no means of legally removing the purchase does not put the blame on the seller.
Caveat Emptor.....Buyer beware. Still holds water (pardon the pun). There is no defence for knowingly buying an unroadworthy vehicle and then using it on the highway. In this case, "I've just bought it and been told it's OK" simply DOES NOT hold water.

[jambo]

Originally Posted by rocknrolla

Thats as good as it gets Braveheart,and i am south of your border son, so i am English have a look at a map book son

Why oh why do you have to bring race into a thread about trailer wts! My good friend and fellow Scot was commenting on the language content not Race!!

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[mister p]

What's a "map book"? Is it like a bible book or a dictionary book?

[kerny]

Originally Posted by jambo

Why oh why do you have to bring race into a thread about trailer wts! My good friend and fellow Scot was commenting on the language content not Race!!

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