The Importance Of Having A Trailer Serviced
Many people don’t understand a trailer needs Servicing in a similar fashion to a car.
To help people do this we have a trailer servicing – maintenance schedule as a guide. It is more important to service a trailer than a car because:
Trailers carry a lot of weight as a result can cause damage or serious injury.
If a trailer becomes detached or has a major problem you are not in control.
There is no MOT for a trailer and as a result end up in poor repair.
Vosa are checking trailers more often for road-worthiness. A driver can get points or a trailer seized due to poor maintaince.
Maintenance of the trailer is the responsibility of the trailer owner. You should not tow a trailer if you are aware of any problems. Poor maintenance of a trailer can result in Catastrophic results.
Safety and Cost
If you keep your tariler serviced you will maybe find there is not much wrong with your trailer. When a trailer is serviced regularly pick up small problems that are probably rectified easily. A small problem can end up costing money or cause more damage when it is not found early. When trailers are left to stand you still need to service the trailer as brake parts, bearings and couplings can all corrode or seize through lack of use, tyres can perish and electrical s can corrode and stop working. Regular servicing can stop the following problems. Customers that leave servicing too long regularly have the following problems.
Trailer Break Cables
Brake cables seize and due to the lack of movement the expander seizes leaving the brakes in an open position. As a result the brake shoes rub the brake drum that wears the shoes. Brake shoes rubbing on a drum may also result in damage to the drum. This can also effects the brake efficiency and the amount of fuel used to tow. When you really need the brakes they do not work. This can cause an accident for the cost of a brake cable.
Wheel Bearings
With wheel bearings you usually will get a bit of warning (play) before a bearing fails. When a wheel bearing fails the whole wheel usually comes off this can damage the shaft as it comes off or if the shaft hits the floor. This means a new axle / suspension unit at an high cost also a trailer wheel can cause a lot of damage/ injury if it hits something or a person.
Service your trailer at least every 12 month.
