Is what you tow covered by liability insurance ?
Submitted: Monday, May 07, 2007 at 15:09
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Member - Vincent A M (NSW)
I was in Vic (
Venus Bay) for the weekend for a Surf life Saving function & one of the
young life savers had just been booked for No trailer rego. apparently in Victoria if your box trailer is a 6 x 4 or smaller it has no rego (just show the car towing its rego) but as he had a Boat on it (a surf rescue duck) it becomes a boat trailer that must be registered. Tough call for a
young guy doing the community a service at he's own cost.
I was going to lend him my NSW trailer trade plate & was told that it was Not ok because the tow car had Vic rego & would be illegal
A bit concerning considering, as this trade plate has been on many trailers towed by hire cars & 4wds in every state in Aust (I,m still waiting on a answer from NSW RTA)
However Vic roads believe that it would be illegal due to liability insurance, & that most cars towing a registered trailer from a different state, maybe not be illegal but could find that there is NO liability insurance due to the different states regs with trailers
makes you wonder
Reply By: Mike Harding - Monday, May 07, 2007 at 15:25
Monday, May 07, 2007 at 15:25
One would have hoped the officer issuing the ticket had a little more common sense.
If you're still in touch it would be worth suggesting the
young man have a close look at the relevant legislation; there is a decent chance it may say something like "a trailer designed or intended to carry a boat" in which case he could argue it isn't a boat trailer merely a box trailer which happened to be carrying a boat.
Mike Harding
AnswerID:
238396
Follow Up By: Jimbo 2121 - Monday, May 07, 2007 at 17:15
Monday, May 07, 2007 at 17:15
*from vicroads website*
Site Link
Trailers exempt from registration
A trailer which is exempt from registration is one which:
* is not used for business purposes, and
* is not specifically constructed to carry a boat, and
* weighs less than 200kg unladen, and
* is not wider than the towing vehicle, and
* is less than three metres in length, including the draw-bar and load.
Exempt trailers must display the same registration number as the towing vehicle.
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Follow Up By: Mike Harding - Monday, May 07, 2007 at 17:23
Monday, May 07, 2007 at 17:23
What a good guess :) Thanks Jimbo.
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Follow Up By: Ianw - Monday, May 07, 2007 at 20:11
Monday, May 07, 2007 at 20:11
The important words here are "three meters in length including drawbar AND LOAD." If the load overhangs at the back, it is illegal. (If its over the three meters in total) I assume a boat like this would overhang if its more than say 8 feet long.
Ian
FollowupID:
499541
Follow Up By: Ianw - Monday, May 07, 2007 at 20:23
Monday, May 07, 2007 at 20:23
Another thing is that trailers in Vic (reg or no reg) dont require insurance. They are covered by the towing vehicles liability insurance. Thats why trailers and vans etc are so cheap to rego here. ($31) Thats also why you cannot tow an unregistered trailer with a vehicle rego'd interstate. (No ins cover)
Ian
FollowupID:
499546
Follow Up By: Mike Harding - Monday, May 07, 2007 at 20:56
Monday, May 07, 2007 at 20:56
Not a police office or other member of "The Authorities", by any chance, are you IanW?
Mike Harding
PS. Or, maybe, an accountant?
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Follow Up By: Ianw - Monday, May 07, 2007 at 21:41
Monday, May 07, 2007 at 21:41
Mike
Na mate, bought an old trailer a few years ago, done it up. It is 6'x5' so I did the research. Still didnt rego it tho' , just wanted to know "THE RULES".
Saw a guy get booked in Ringwood a couple of years ago. Cop put the tape measure over the trailer . Bloke had a length of timber hanging a couple of feet over the back so the ticket was written out.
Ian
FollowupID:
499568
Reply By: Andrew from Vivid Adventures - Monday, May 07, 2007 at 17:19
Monday, May 07, 2007 at 17:19
Interesting question of what happens when you bring your vic trailer to SA where separate trailer rego and generally insurance is required.
AnswerID:
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Follow Up By: Ianw - Monday, May 07, 2007 at 20:05
Monday, May 07, 2007 at 20:05
The no rego OPTION only applies in Vic. If the trailor goes over the border it must be rego'd. Whoopee, pay the $31 and go anywhere!
Ian
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Follow Up By: disco1942 - Tuesday, May 08, 2007 at 01:25
Tuesday, May 08, 2007 at 01:25
Don't know what the current regs are but a few years ago some states the third party insurance was covered by the tow vehicle policy and other states required separate 3rd party coverage.
PeterD
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Reply By: Smudger - Monday, May 07, 2007 at 18:14
Monday, May 07, 2007 at 18:14
Couple of years ago we bought a used CT in Vic. When we drove down from Syd to pick it up, they had taken the plates and rego' sticker off to cash in. they told us "we only register it as a security measure .. don't have to have it registered here in Mexico." But since we were returning to
Sydney we got 'em to put the plates back on. Not sure what our situation would have been if the CT wasn't registered. My take is that we couldn't have towed it over the border.
AnswerID:
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Follow Up By: Max - Sydney - Monday, May 07, 2007 at 20:07
Monday, May 07, 2007 at 20:07
Smudger
You probably would have been ok if you had taken it straight to a weigh
bridge, then a licensed examiner for a blue slip, then to the RTA to register it in Albury.
I did that procedure when i bought a CT made in
Brisbane and it was freighted to
Sydney. I picked it up in the carrier's yard, and towed it around the circuit - had made an appointment with the examiner. It was done on the advice of the RTA.
What you did - use the original Vic plates, was probably ok provided you registered it in NSW within a couple of weeks.
Its probably easier to do it all in a country town - i have certainly got a pink slip & re-registered the car in
Broken Hill.
Max
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Reply By: Muddy doe (SA) - Monday, May 07, 2007 at 21:30
Monday, May 07, 2007 at 21:30
Just one more reason to completely abolish State Governments.
Get rid of them and give it all to the Commonwealth Govt to make uniform national regulations so we can stop all this endless friggin' around with 8 different sets of rules and buckpassing between who is gunna look after stuff!!!
Put the resources that are spent on State Govts into Local Govt and get some more professional people who actually know what they are doing into local councils instead of the self interested twits they have there now.
This sort of "diffences between states" stuff is just another example of how over governed we are in this country. 2 sets of politicians would be ample. 1 set to look after Australia as a country and one set to concentrate on administering good local communities within the consistent national framework.
HOW HARD CAN IT BE!!!
Off soapbox now....
Muddy
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Follow Up By: _gmd_pps - Monday, May 07, 2007 at 22:17
Monday, May 07, 2007 at 22:17
And what about the thousands of councils ... they are worse ..
even more idiots there ...
it's the nature of the beast when "elected" people run the show ..
It's the same with teachers ... not the brightest ones you get for the job
have fun
gmd
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