There are increasing calls for caravan owners to be forced to complete specialist training and carry a specific licence following outrage at fatal on-road incidents.
Lobby groups and first responders are joining the growing push to establish minimum standards before inexperienced caravan and motorhome drivers are allowed on the road.
Australia experienced a huge increase in caravan ownership during and after the pandemic when many overseas holiday options were unavailable.
It was a great boost to caravan sales and domestic tourism, but it also put a lot of drivers inexperienced in towing or driving a larger vehicle on the road. Compounding the lack of driving knowledge is a poor understanding of overweight or unbalanced loads, drivers driving on roads they are not knowledgable about and speeding.
Increasing accidents
The Royal Automotive Club of Western Australia (RAC WA) told the ABC that caravan-related collisions had increased by almost 20 per cent in the past three years.
“It is crucial caravan owners prioritise learning how to safely maintain, load and tow their vans,” RAC WA claims manager Glen Walker told Yahoo News. “It’s also critical to keep the caravan balanced, with the correct weight on the tow hitch, by distributing weight evenly when packing,” he said.
As for weight issues, it’s estimated about 80 per cent of caravans on the road are over their weight limits and don’t meet roadworthy requirements.
Dave Jason, from Get-A-Weigh, told Yahoo News the number of people who don’t care about being over the limit is alarming.
“Some people are conscientious enough to want to be safe and legal, and some just aren’t. They just don’t care and don’t want to know,” he said.
“And we’re not talking little amounts. We’re talking about some of these vehicles being over by tonnes.
“If you are pulled over and your weights are not within the specifications, you can be fined and lose licence points for every infringement, and your vehicle will be deemed unroadworthy and therefore uninsured,” he added.
“It’s scary to think that the oncoming vehicle travelling at 100km/h could potentially be one of the 80 per cent we see.”
Crazy
It’s a situation echoed by others in the industry.
Overweight and unstable caravans are a big problem in Australia and are causing serious accidents, Tony Maddison, director of towing technology company WiTi, told the Courier Mail. “In most cases, drivers only need their car licence and they can hitch up three tonnes or more of caravan and take it out on the roads with no training whatsoever … which is just crazy,” he said.
The National Transport Research Organisation (NTRO) has also called for mandatory training to be rolled out across Australia.
“On the road isn’t the best place to learn the skills that you need to safely travel,” NTRO safer infrastructure leader Emily McLean told the ABC.
“Any sort of licensing scheme would have to be put in place at the state or territory level, but that doesn’t mean that there can’t be a national agreement or endorsement around what that looks like.”
The ever-increasing size of these vehicles isn’t helping the situation either.
“Caravanning is a multigenerational Australian way of holidaying, however, over the past decade caravans and RVs have increased in both length and weight,” Daniel Sahlberg, chief executive officer of the Caravan Industry Association of Victoria, told Drive.
“The five-metre pop-top vans of the past have been largely replaced by vans measuring almost 10 metres and weighing over 3500 kilograms.
“Just as greater driver skills and knowledge are needed to tow these longer heavier vans, regulation needs change to keep pace with the ever-evolving – and growing – caravan market.”
Other common mistakes inexperienced drivers are making include attaching bikes or other equipment to the back of the caravan or motorhome, obscuring the number plate and not installing proper rear vision side mirrors.
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Also read: How to keep your caravan safe after shocking rise in theft
Not only should drivers have their licence endorsed after undergoing and passing a training course, but when buying a caravan it should be mandatory that the vehicles allowed to tow that van are specified, with a margin for loads including people and fuel.
It also should take into account axle load limits.