There are 3 Main Reasons why people have their caravans and tow vehicles weighed by Check Weight.
They are:
1. Peace of Mind
2. They don’t want to get fined for being overweight
3. They don’t want to lose their Insurance if they are overweight and have an accident.
1. Peace of Mind.
Generally the market is pretty aware that overweight caravans and tow vehicles are an issue on the roads.
- Some people are just ostriches and poke their head in the sand.
- Some people put it in the too hard basket.
- But an increasing amount of people want to do the right thing, and have a safe and legal vehicle combination.
One way to do this is by weighing their tow vehicle and caravan with a mobile weigher such as Check Weight. A number of Check Weight’s clients have run their combination over a weighbridge before, but they want more information on what exactly the weights are on each wheel, each axle, the combination and what they may be able to do to fix any problems.
For example: Check Weight weighed a caravan where the rear axle of the caravan had more weight than the front. The caravan sometimes porpoised and was at its ATM Limit. This can be dangerous. So after weighing and knowing now where the weight is, the owner removed the spare wheel from the rear of the caravan and placed it in the tow vehicle (he had room) reducing his caravan weight and reducing the weight at the back of the caravan.
Another caravan owner was well over his ATM, so after the consultation he removed the 2nd Spare wheel off the back of the caravan (they never went off road anyway) and removed a lot of items that they had just accumulated over the years. Not only are they on the way to now being legal, the lower weight in the caravan will take stress of the tow vehicle and reduce their fuel consumption!
2. They don’t want to get fined.
There have been numerous posts online about Victoria and Queensland having “weighing” blitzes targeting caravans. Some get warnings – some get fines.
With fines starting at around $439, and 3 points in NSW, who can afford to give the government money “for nothing”?
NSW has long been very strict on trucks and their weights, however recent accidents in NSW and other states has brought over weight caravans to the notice of authorities. Be warned NSW caravan owners – you may get weighed sooner than you think ?
From time to time on the NSW Police Facebook page there will be a post about an overweight 4wd towing another car or just overloaded. You have been warned !
https://www.facebook.com/TrafficServicesNSWPF/posts/3124657060932586
3. They don’t want to lose their Insurance if they are overweight and have an accident.
Most people don’t realise that a legal limit is just that. A limit!
To exceed a legal limit means you are breaking the law, and as such an Insurance company can deny an insurance claim if you were – or they deemed that you were overweight. And how can you prove to an insurance company (or court) that you were under the legal limits if you have never weighed your rig?
Check Weights comprehensive weight report is evidence that at a certain date – you were under the legal limits, had shown due diligence and were aware of your legal obligations. Better to have that information prior to any accident or insurance claim!
If you have a $60K Vehicle and a $70K caravan that can be a pretty expensive $130 000 mistake!
And if only your caravan was overweight – you may still lose your vehicle insurance if the caravan being overweight contributed to the accident.
As well as insurance, the manufacturer of both your vehicle and caravan can deny any warranty claims if your vehicle or caravan is overweight. Limits are imposed for a reason.
One is to keep you safe. The other is to cover the manufacturers butt!
Check Weight is a mobile weighing service based in Newcastle NSW and covering Port Stephens, the Hunter, Mid North Coast, Lake Macquarie and the Central Coast.
Book online at https://www.checkweight.com.au/book-online or phone Jeff on 0419693975.
Can you afford not to weigh your caravan ?
