Parlimentaey Advisory Council is looking for inproved agri trailer maintenance and roadworthiness.

New UK Towing Safety Alliance Launches with Campaign to Improve Towing Safety Across the UK

A new coalition dedicated to improving towing safety has launched in response to alarming statistics highlighting safety concerns associated with risks while towing, for work and leisure, on UK roads. The UK Towing Safety Alliance, in collaboration with the Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety (PACTS)

Jane Gurney MBE. Tilly Trailer Pass. commented on the inportance of the scheme.

Agriculture is the most dangerous industry in the UK, with the annual injury rate over the last five years around 21 times the all-industry rate. Repairing and

maintaining standards of safety whilst towing is therefore vital to reduce the fatality

rate of the industry.

The Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 Reg 2 section (2) (a) states that the

employer has a duty to provide and maintain plant and systems of work that are, so

far as is practicable, safe and without risks to health. This is made abundantly clear in

the Provision of Work Equipment Regulations 1998.

PUWER 98 regulations state that all employers must provide work equipment

which is maintained in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair.

Case law has determined that any failure of work equipment is evidence of a breach

of these regulations. Therefore it is incumbent upon Farm owners to make sure that

any equipment they provide, for use on their farms, is maintained to the highest

standards and this definitely applies to agricultural trailers.

BS1400:2023 sets the minimum standards for maintenance of all work

equipment. The Tilly Pass scheme has been designed to ensure that all work carried

out on the trailers conforms to this standard.

Maintaining trailers should reduce future costs of large scale repairs which

could have been prevented by routing maintenance - therefore reducing the risk of

issues and increasing the efficiency of trailers as working vehicles.

Inspection and maintenance should also improve the quality of the

secondhand trailer market, including those sold through auction houses.

Jamie Hassall, Executive Director at PACTS, commented on the importance of the Alliance, “The statistics from both the DVSA and National Highways demonstrate an urgent need to improve towing safety across the UK. Through the UK Towing Safety Alliance and the launch of the TLC campaign, we are bringing together expertise from a wide range of organisations to advocate for safer towing practices. This collaborative effort will ensure that drivers have the knowledge and resources they need to make informed decisions and reduce the risks associated with towing.”

As the number of towing-related incidents continues to present unnecessary and preventable risk on the UK’s roads, the UK Towing Safety Alliance is encouraging all road users who tow to engage with the TLC campaign and make safety a top priority.