Tie your loads on carefully with roof racks and trailers

ummmm isn't it common sense to use tie downs when you have something on the roof rack?????

It certainly isn't!!!!!

just in case you are short of common sense, the government employs thousands of people to document common sense and then expends millions of dollars to remind people what it is...........Welcome to Workplace Health & Safety

Craig

Objects falling from vehicles have resulted in many deaths to other motorists. Examples include, bricks, loading ramps, tie downs, lengths of timber etc. The driver of a vehicle that loses a portion of it's load commits an offence. Insecure load - or similar.

I had my widnscreen caved in recently on my way to Beachport by someones insecure load on a trailer.
No warning at all just straight in to the air and wack at 100km per Hr.
Luckily it hit the passengers side and not the drivers side or vision would have been nil.
Could have ended up serious had it come through and hit my wife or kids as it is we had glass everywhere.
I continued to make the car responsible pull over.
He didn't really care didn't ask if everyone was okay, a bit too relaxed for my liking considoring someonbe could have been seriously injured.
When I reported it to the police more for the insurance side of things they said he would not be fined for an insecure load.
I couldnt work that out still cant.

Cheers
Paul.

I learned the hard way not to use okky straps for large or heavy roof rack loads. Webbing straps work a lot better.

Many many years ago I transported a trailer load of rolls of fencing mesh back from manjimum to Nannup - and trabelled down the so caled bridgetown hill.

On arival at home.....one of the rolls appeared to have gone missing! (oops).

It was late by then almost midnight - but i didn't want some poor SOB driving into it and getting injured so I went back looking for it!

Luckily it was near the home end that it fell (bunced) off the trailer, but unbeknowns to me - when it hit the road - it unrolled and layed flat along the road for the 100 meters - partway down the bridgetown hill!

I didn't see it with the lights going back up the hill - but when I was comming home again down the hill for now the 2nd time...I "saw" it, - after I was already on top of it!

I jammed on the brakes, but the wire was heavy galve high tensile mesh stuff and it kept the tyres pretty much off the bitumen, and I skidded diown the hill, on top of the mesh as it, in turn scrunched up under the vehicle - got tangled in the underside mechanicals of the ute etc etc.

Luckily I didn't run off the road but it was a weird sensation - sorta like driving on ice and unable to steer or stop!

In the end i was glad it was me who "ran over my own mistake".

I was under the ute for hours with a torch and pliers cutting the wire out of the mechanicals (unis and talshaft) etc..steering brakes - you name it!

I ended up rolling it up again and puting it in the back and getting it home safe - eventually - but I am now ANAL about tying rolls of wire into trailers utes etc - once bitten twice shy - I shdder to think what might have happened if it had been say a laden log truck comming down that hill - when ithit the wire - I am sure death would have been involved!

Just glad it was late and a quiet road and I got back to it first!

When I see others transporting rolls of wire fencing mesh, I give a very wide berth...

This stuff was 7ft wide deer fencing mesh so it covered a whole lane of the road, both wheels....

I guess it is what they call "learning by experience".

It was well tied in, i thought.......but it got away all the same!

Cheers