Mastering Towing with Caravans: Your Comprehensive Guidebook
For those new to the world of caravanning, towing a caravan can be an intimidating task. However, two of the UK's leading caravan clubs, The Camping and Caravanning Club and The Caravan and Motorhome Club, are here to help. They offer caravan towing courses designed to develop practical skills and safety awareness.
These courses, while specific details may vary, typically cover a wide range of key components. These include pre-towing checks, safe attachment, manoeuvring skills, understanding legal and safety requirements, risk assessment, and post-operational checks.
Pre-tow checks and safe attachment
Before hitting the road, it's crucial to inspect both the caravan and the towing vehicle. This includes checking the hitch and breakaway cable to ensure safe and legal roadworthiness.
Driving and manoeuvring skills
Proficiency in driving with a trailer attached is another essential skill. Participants learn how to control the caravan on roads, including reversing, turning, and manoeuvring in tight or challenging spaces.
Understanding legal towing requirements
Knowing the relevant laws and regulations related to towing caravans is also a key part of these courses. This includes understanding towing laws, speed limits, and road safety.
Emergency handling and risk assessment
Participants are taught how to plan routes, assess hazards, and respond to emergency situations related to towing.
Post-tow checks and maintenance
Lastly, skills to maintain caravan integrity after towing are covered. This includes checking connections and tire conditions.
These outcomes align with a typical "Trailer Manoeuvring" course, such as one offered by Link Resources.
Practical Training Sessions
The courses offered by The Camping and Caravanning Club and The Caravan and Motorhome Club provide hands-on, practical training. For instance, participants learn straight-line reversing, nearside and offside reversing around a bend, and levelling (front, rear, and side-to-side).
The Camping and Caravanning Club offers two types of tuition: Confidence Builder course and Pitch and Progress course. The training takes place on the busy roads of Coventry, including country lanes, inner-city ring roads, and terraced streets.
The courses are transformative for novices who are new to caravanning, making them confident to tow a caravan for the first time. Lisa, one of the participants, completed a near-flawless 45-minute tow, her first time towing a caravan.
Additional Resources
Both clubs also offer additional resources. The Caravan and Motorhome Club offers a website training course and Caravan Manoeuvring course. The courses take place at various locations across Scotland, England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
Benefits and Recommendations
The courses offer great value for money and insurance discounts every year. All participants expressed enthusiasm about the course and would recommend tow training as 100% worthwhile.
To participate, participants must bring a current standard driver's license, a car with a legal towbar and 13-pin electric socket receiver, a minimum of third-party liability cover for their car, and two external towing mirrors.
In conclusion, for those new to caravanning, these courses provide a comprehensive and practical approach to learning caravan towing skills. With the focus on safe, competent towing, practical driving techniques with a caravan, and relevant legal regulations, these courses ensure road safety and confidence for new caravanners.
- The caravan clubs in the UK, such as The Camping and Caravanning Club and The Caravan and Motorhome Club, offer courses to help newcomers develop caravan towing skills and achieve practical proficiency in handling a caravan on the road.
- The courses provide hands-on, practical training, including straight-line reversing, nearside and offside reversing around a bend, and levelling to improve manual dexterity with a caravan.
- Apart from the caravan towing courses, additional resources like website training and in-person Caravan Manoeuvring courses are available from various locations through The Caravan and Motorhome Club.
- The courses offer benefits, such as great value for money and annual insurance discounts, and are highly recommended by participants for ensuring road safety, competent towing, and confidence in the caravanning lifestyle.
