We all love our home comforts, so going on a caravan holiday is a great option for many people who prefer to cater for themselves while still having the freedom to explore what the UK and Europe have to offer. From beautiful seaside towns to warm beaches and rolling green pastures, you can get closer to nature while maintaining many of the luxuries of home.
Before you set off on your next adventure, you must prepare your caravan for towing. A well-prepared setup reduces stress, improves safety, and helps avoid mechanical or legal issues on the road. Read on for some top tips that will ensure your trailer is safe for the journey ahead.
1. Know Your Limits: Weight, Licences, and Capacity
Check your vehicle’s towing capacity
Before you even begin packing, consult your car’s handbook (or manufacturer’s specifications) to find:
- The maximum towing weight your car can handle (both with and without brakes).
- The maximum noseweight (or vertical load) the towball can take.
- The maximum gross weight of the car + caravan combined (often stated as Maximum Authorised Mass, or MAM).
Exceeding any of these figures can lead to excessive strain, poor handling, or damage.
Understand stability and noseweight
To ensure stability, your caravan should be towed level or with a slight nose-down attitude (never nose-up). A good rule of thumb is to aim for 5–7% of the caravan’s laden weight as noseweight. You can adjust the noseweight by shifting heavy items forward or rearwards, or by adding/removing load near the caravan’s axle.
If the car’s rear end “sags” when towing, you may need load-levelling or suspension aids.
Legal and licence considerations
In the UK, you must follow government rules on towing, including weight limits and speed.
For example, you could be fined up to £2,500 and receive penalty points for towing a trailer in a dangerous condition or breaking regulations.
The DVLA requires suitable towing mirrors if the caravan is wider than your vehicle.
All indicators, brake, sidelights and number-plate lighting must be functioning, and you must legally have a warning if your caravan indicators fail.
Always display the same registration plate on the caravan as the towing vehicle. Mismatched plates could lead to penalties.
Check whether your driving licence allows you to tow your intended caravan (depending on when the licence was obtained and the caravan/car combined mass).
2. Pack It Correctly
How you pack your caravan has a dramatic effect on how safely and smoothly it tows.
General packing principles
- Start with the heavy items. Place them as low and as close to the axle and to the tow point as possible. This lowers the centre of gravity.
- Next, pack medium items. Distribute them evenly around the centre of the caravan’s load floor.
- Reserve overhead areas for light items. Clothes, bedding, etc.
- Avoid piling heavy items at the extreme rear; this can destabilise the rig and lead to ‘snaking.’
- Use tie-downs, bungees, or nets to secure all items so they cannot shift during travel.
Minimise what you carry
Unless travelling off-grid, you usually don’t need to overfill water tanks or stock too much extra food. That extra weight eats into your payload allowance.
Practical additions
- Keep a spare wheel, possibly a compact spare, or a tyre repair kit.
- Pack essentials like a fire extinguisher, wheel chocks, first-aid kit, toolkit, extension leads, hoses, etc.
- Keep spare bulbs for lighting, extra oil or fluids, and emergency equipment in the tow vehicle, too.
3. Hitching, Safety Checks and Pre-Departure Walkaround
Once your caravan is loaded, you must go through a systematic procedure to ensure everything is correctly connected and safe.
Hitching-up checklist
The Camping and Caravanning Club recommends a detailed list of steps, including:
- Turn off gas, stow hoses, and cables.
- Empty waste and water tanks if needed.
- Lock internal doors and cupboards, secure all loose items.
- Apply caravan handbrake, chock wheels if on a slope.
- Lower the jockey wheel, raise the corner steadies.
- Align and couple the car to the caravan.
- Attach breakaway cable/secondary coupling.
- Secure the hitch and ensure correct coupling (watch green indicators on couplers).
- Raise the jockey wheel, stow it.
- Engage stabiliser (if fitted), connect electrical plug(s).
- Verify lights/indicators functioning.
- Fit towing mirrors, then pull away slowly.
Checks before moving off
- Confirm tyre pressures (on both car and caravan) are correct for loaded weights.
- Check wheel nuts/bolts torqued to spec (not over-tightened).
- Test all lights, indicators, brake lights, tail lights, number-plate lights, etc.
- Use your mirrors to ensure good overall visibility.
- Do a walk-around: check external lockers, doors, gas bottle latches, windows, roof vents, and that nothing is protruding dangerously.
A final tip
Plan to stop fairly soon after leaving to give everything a second visual check, especially wheel nuts, lights, and hitch integrity. Many breakdowns are due to things loosening after the first few miles.
4. Driving and Manoeuvring with a Caravan
Once on the road, towing changes how your vehicle behaves, so you’ll need to adopt different driving habits.
Adjust your driving
- Allow extra space in front of you; braking distance increases when towing.
- Drive more smoothly; avoid sudden steering inputs, harsh braking or rapid acceleration.
- Be cautious downhill; too much speed invites instability (snaking or oscillation).
- On motorways and dual carriageways, the maximum towing speed is 60 mph, and you must not use the right-hand (fast) lane on 3+ lane roads.
- On single carriageways, the limit is 50 mph for many caravans.
Negotiating corners, roundabouts and lanes
- Take wider lines so the back of the caravan clears kerbs or obstacles.
- Be extra cautious around petrol pumps (swing) or narrow lanes; caravan wheels pivot and “cut in” closer to hazards.
- When overtaking, signal early, accelerate smoothly, and ensure you have enough clear distance.
- Avoid towing in convoy; each rig behaves differently.
Reversing and manoeuvring
- Practice beforehand in an open space.
- Small, slow steering movements work best.
- Understand that when you steer left, the caravan often turns right (and vice versa), depending on the pivot point.
- If things don’t go right, pull forward, realign, and try again.
- For tight pitches or awkward spaces, a motor-mover (powered mover) can help shift or turn the caravan without vehicle dragging.
5. En Route and On-Site Considerations
Monitor as you go
- Stop every 50–100 miles to check tyre temperatures, wheel nuts, and external fixtures.
- In strong crosswinds or passing heavy lorries, reduce speed and keep firm control.
- Be aware of steep inclines or descents; use lower gears and engine braking.
Levelling and setting up once you arrive
- Use levelling ramps and steadies to get your caravan straight.
- Lower corner steadies and secures the caravan firmly.
- Connect water, electricity, and gas (make sure gas is turned off during transit).
- Re-check the balance of your caravan once level; sometimes things shift during towing.
6. Final Checks and Safety Summary
Here is a compact final checklist you can print or copy:
- Verify car and caravan weight limits and licence compatibility
- Check and adjust tyre pressures (both units)
- Tighten wheel nuts/bolts to correct torque
- Secure all internal items, close cupboards, windows, and doors
- Switch off gas and stow hoses/cables
- Hitch up correctly and connect the breakaway cable
- Connect electrical wiring and test all lights/indicators
- Fit and adjust towing mirrors
- Walk around to check external fittings, latches, vents
- Drive off slowly and recheck after a few miles
- Stop periodically along the way to re-inspect
- Drive within recommended speed limits (50 mph single, 60 mph motorway)
- Use wide paths on corners, allow extra braking distance
- Practice reversing in a safe area beforehand
By following these checks, you greatly reduce the chance of mechanical or safety issues and ensure a smoother, more confident towing experience.
SG Haulage offers domestic and commercial haulage services across the UK, Spain, Portugal, and France. Whether you need your caravan moved across the country or you require international road haulage, get in touch today.