There have been three deaths in road accidents involving caravans in the past week alone, and that’s focussing attention on the whole issue of towing safety like never before.
No doubt there will be renewed calls for mandatory towing courses, a review of rest areas, a new look at speed limits and road conditions in accident blackspots … and a closer analysis of caravan manufacturing standards.
There is, of course, no guarantee that changes to any of those things would have stopped the tragedies that we have witnessed in the last few days. Upcoming inquests will no doubt throw more light on the exact circumstances of each incident and, perhaps, make recommendations to help prevent similar tragedies.
In both of the recent fatal accidents, it appears that one of the vehicles involved was on the wrong side of the road.
It is believed that a Singaporean died on the Indian Ocean Drive south of Lancelin when his car drifted to the wrong side of the road before colliding with a red four-wheel-drive towing a caravan travelling in the opposite direction. The dead man had been driving with his partner and two children.
Similarly, it is believed that the grey nomad caravanning couple who died when they collided with a B-double carrying cattle on the Cobb Highway in New South Wales may have veered into the path of the truck as it tried to overtake.
While caravan standards may not have been a factor in either accident, Western Australia’s Road Safety Commissioner has already called for a five-star safety rating to be introduced for caravan manufacturers.
Kim Papalia says buyers should be able to make an informed choice when it comes to buying a van on the market, and the vehicle five-star system is a perfect way to start.
“In our country, you can import sub-standard safety caravans into the country,” Mr Papalia told Channel 7. “We’ve been looking to work with the industry to get safety standards recognised at point of sale so people can make an informed choice.”
The Caravan Industry Association agrees, and says it is constantly working to improve safety.
“The design codes kick in when you’re manufacturing caravans,” said the Association’s Craig Kenyon. “We’re constantly working with manufactures to improve that,”
There were more than 21,000 caravans manufactured in Australia last year.
As a Grey Nomad ….my heart goes out to the familys .
Couples wait all thier lives to retire and live the dream , freedom , relaxation , seeing all they can of our magnificent country , it is cruel that it can be taken away in an instant .
The more accidents I read about the more I am starting to believe that all caravanners should have to take thier rigs to get weighed Full with vehicle and get a sticker or something .
And , not that we have done it but i think we should , all have to do a defensive driving course with our fully loaded vans on …..
same as truckies …..
Something has to be done before more senseless accidents occur .
Alot of drivers have trouble with a box trailer and yet they can hook up to a 3 ton 20 ft carravan and drive off it.s wrong
Would be interested if the size and the weight of our modern vans are an issue. We were the caravan show last week and could not believe how big they are. There is no way I would want to be towing one of the beasts, besides I want to get away from it not take it with me.
Well said Charlie have just visited the Brisbane show and seeing that a lot of high end vans could not be “legally” towed by any vehicle stating that they can tow 3.5 ton. I also agree with Sharon’s statement that all rigs should be weighed and certificated with harsh penalties fir those exceeding their certificated weight.
As regards to penalties, what should be done the the miss stamped compliance plates, with regards to weight – there are some vans sold with plates showing 100’s of Kg under what the van really is and it is the owner that cops the fine unknownly – Check the unloaded weight of your van, you maybe in for an unplesant surprise.
the bottom line is as you put more vans on the road per capita your going to increase the number of accidents.
simple maths
Mandatory licensing for all caravan owners . As soon as you put a van 18ft and over on the back you are more or less a heavy articulated vehicle and should have mandatory log books . I drive for a living and am subject to the lwas of the road . I also have towed my van non stop with minimal breaks far longer than im allowed in my truck . Im not saying the poor souls that lost their lives are ar fault .
Anybody can buy a vehicle with 3 1/2 ton towing capacity a big van , and off you go . Just something to think about .
It appears here that neither of the accidents were the fault of the grey nomads. Either way it is very sad but all road users need to be more viligant. there is always the possibility of something awful occurring. Most truckers we have encountered as grey nomads do the right thing but sometimes as they pass us there can be a pull towards them. Therefore one has to be aware of this and act accordingly, and give them plenty of room.
Good comment Steve
I spent 46 years driving trucks around Oz and have always maintained that anyone driving a combination of 3 tonnes and over, should have a special license.
I have an HR licence. That entitles me to drive any rigid truck and tow a trailer not exceeding 9t gvm. Why the talk of an HC licence when I am licensed to drive my rig already. There are a lot of city drivers who shouldn’t be driving a car even let alone tow a caravan.
The accident on the Indian Ocean Drive was caused by the inexperience of an overseas driver. Sadly he died and sympathy to his family but it wasn’t the fault of the caravanner.
I agree that there needs to be more rules put in place before people are able to tow big vans. My husband and I did a Tow-Ed course before we set off in our 19′. I have light rigid truck licence and my husband a heavy rigid licence but all of this is useless if someone else on the road causes the accident. Less speed, check weights and more rests would help
We’ve just travelled from Perth to Brisbane to Vic with a large caravan and Landcruiser. We were surprised at how many massive caravans much bigger than ours were towed with smaller vehicles and wondered how on earth they managed all the hills. One in particular could barely make 40ks going up a hill and had a line of traffic including trucks stuck behind him.
Agree with all the above comments. We tow a 3:5-4tonne caravan with a 5 tonne Dodge Ram. That is the sort of vehicle required to do the job. On our current trip, we have encounted two small vehicles who were travelling so fast that the veered onto our side of the road. Had we not been travelling at 90ks per hour, responding appropriatley to the situation, we would have collected them. We now have a dash cam. Caravan crashes are always tragic. Every situation is different. We believe that the tow vehicle is the key to how well a caravan can be towed safely. If the caravan weight is 3.5 tonne fully loaded, then the tow vehicle has to be bigger.
At the same time in SA there were several vehicle related deaths that did not involve caravans. And the 4×4 towing a van up the freeway and got caught on fire was not involved in an accident. A truckie called the driver to pull over as there was a fire at the rear of the 4×4. Is it just caravans that cause such a flurry of attention to specific vehicle accidents? Did you see the video of a truck overtaking another on the Augusta highway? Not just caravans, as someone said before, the more of them on the road, the more that they are likely to be involved. However, not always to blame,