Safe Towing - from the horse's mouth

Buy Safe T-Signs here

Safe T-Sign is a high visibility, reflective magnetic safety sign, designed for people who tow trailers of all kinds.  Safe T-Sign promotes safe towing by alerting other road users that you’re towing, even in situations where they don’t see your trailer.

 

Over the last week or so, I've been sharing photos of towing test passes on the Safe Towing Facebook page.   

We have some great quotes from some of the towing instructors that use Safe T-Signs:

“The main benefits of Safe T-Signs are that they get you noticed. On emerging you are in your most vulnerable position when towing so a reflective sign such as the Safe T-Sign certainly gets attention of other road users. We wouldn't tow without them.”

George Ritchie, Director, Three Shires Driving Centre Ltd.

 

"The main benefit of Safe T-Signs is the greater presence they give a tow vehicle when emerging at junctions, especially in conditions of reduced visibility."

Martin Lovell ADI & Trailer Instructor.

" I was 'caught out' by the change to the B+E test requiring a 600kg load; having taken delivery of my marginally underpowered and overgeared car a few days before the final details were announced. As expected, this has blunted my car and trailer's performance, especially moving off from stationary at junctions, where anything that means other road users have some idea as to your 'limitations' helps. Although it's difficult to assess whether or not the Safe T-Sign has made a difference, we've not had any 'hairy moments' since applying the signs to my car doors prior to training and tests. A quality product that 'does what it says' and creates the right impression."

Martin Hall, ADI and Trailer Instructor.

Try them - Whatever kind of trailer you’re towing, Safe T Signs mean Safe Towing!

Be seen and be safe when you emerge from junctions or roundabouts, and when you are towing in the dark.  Safe T-Signs are visible on your car even when your trailer is out of sight. Use when towing trailers of all kinds – caravans, boat trailers, horse trailers, trailer tents, motor bike trailer, spectacle or general purpose trailers.

Safe T-Signs are magnetic, reflective in the dark or poor lighting conditions and visible from 50m.

Buy Safe T-Sign here.  Be seen and be safe - Safe Towing!

Towing - Be conspicuous....

Whatever kind of trailer you’re towing, Safe T Signs mean Safe Towing! Be seen and be safe when you emerge from junctions or roundabouts, and when you are towing in the dark. Buy Safe T Signs from our website here:  http://www.safetowing.co.uk/buy-now.htm


Seeing is believing ...
What we see depends mainly on what we expect to see  ...

"...  Most of us at one time or another have experienced pulling out and narrowly missing a bicycle coming from the direction which you've just looked.  Errors of this type are common because drivers are generally looking for cars or lorries but not for smaller objects such as bicycles or motorcycles which they fail to see. When we concentrate we don't just look at a particular part of a scene, we look for particular types of objects in that scene. We find it easier to detect objects that we expect to see, and react more quickly to them.  Conversely we often fail to see objects that we do not expect to see."
Towing roadcraft - the essential towing handbook


Being conspicuous ...
In road safety terms conspicuity is how a road user or vehicle draws attention to its presence when other road users aren't actively looking for it, for example, by using fluorescent clothing (cyclists, pedestrians and lorry drivers) or using retro-reflective markings (if you're a truck or a lorry).   

Conspicuity is an issue for drivers who tow.   Even though other road users ought to see that you're towing, they don't ...  

Conspicuity - the evidence
Research identified that accidents happened because drivers should have seen large, obvious vehicles but for some reason didn't.  It also identified that improving vehicle visibility would offer the best prospects for improving road safety   This research was behind the introduction of retro reflective markings on trucks.

Conspicuity and Towing
Conspicuity and perception are an issue for drivers who tow trailers:

• When you are driving in poor visibility at twilight or night or in weather conditions which reduce visibility
• In situations where other road users fail to see that you are towing a trailer in time 
• In situations where other drivers fail to appreciate that you are towing and that you need more room and take longer to brake and accelerate.

Other situations where other road users may not see when a vehicle is towing include:

• Some trailers are too low to be easily seen 
• Emerging from a junction or busy roundabout where there are other vehicles, buildings or hedges means that trailers aren't always apparent 
• When it's dark, it's more difficult to see in general. Trailers often aren't visible, especially from the side 
• Even with larger trailers, their colour and/ or speed means that they often aren't conspicuous to other road users 

Safe T-Signs are boldly designed to stand out and to be reflective in dark and poor lighting conditions.  They are visible from 50m.  Safe T-Signs can be seen on cars, even when other road users haven't noticed your trailer. 

What people say about Safe T-Signs
“The main benefits of Safe T-Signs are that they get you noticed. On emerging you are in your most vulnerable position when towing so a reflective sign such as the Safe T-Sign certainly gets attention of other road users. We wouldn't tow without them.”
George Ritchie, Director, Three Shires Driving Centre Ltd.

"The main benefit of Safe T-Signs is the greater presence they give a tow vehicle when emerging at junctions, especially in conditions of reduced visibility."
Martin Lovell ADI & Trailer Instructor.

"I was 'caught out' by the change to the B+E test requiring a 600kg load; having taken delivery of my marginally under-powered and over-geared car a few days before the final details were announced. As expected, this has blunted my car and trailer's performance, especially moving off from stationary at junctions, where anything that means other road users have some idea as to your 'limitations' helps. Although it's difficult to assess whether or not the Safe T-Sign has made a difference, we've not had any 'hairy moments' since applying the signs to my car doors prior to training and tests. A quality product that 'does what it says' and creates the right impression."
Martin Hall, ADI and Trailer Instructor.

Whatever kind of trailer you’re towing, Safe T Signs mean Safe Towing! Be seen and be safe when you emerge from junctions or roundabouts, and when you are towing in the dark. Buy Safe T Signs from our website here:  http://www.safetowing.co.uk/buy-now.htm

Safe Towing with Safe T-Signs - Frequently Asked Questions

Whatever kind of trailer you’re towing, Safe T Signs mean Safe Towing! Be seen and be safe when you emerge from junctions or roundabouts, and when you are towing in the dark.

Buy Safe T Signs from our website here:  http://www.safetowing.co.uk/buy-now.htm

Safe T-Signs let other road users see that you’re towing – even when they don’t see your trailer.  Place them on your car doors before you start your journey then peel them off when you get there.  Safe T-Signs are invaluable if you're towing your caravan or simply taking a trailer to the local refuse site.

Here are some of the questions we get asked about using Safe T-Signs.

Frequently Asked Questions

People can see I’m towing - why do I need a Safe T-Sign?

What we see mainly depends on what we expect to see.   There's a great deal of evidence which shows that we often don’t see the unexpected.  All of us have experienced being surprised when we have failed to spot something that we should have seen.

There are also many situations when trailers are hidden from other road users.  For example, where the vehicle is pulling out of a junction or onto a traffic island or at night.  Safe T-Signs help by giving other road users extra information so that they know you're towing, even when they can’t or don’t see the trailer.

Can Safe T-Signs be used on all cars and vehicles?

Safe T signs work on vehicles with steel doors, this is nearly all vehicles.  If you aren’t sure, then try putting a fridge magnet on your vehicle door and if it sticks, then a Safe T-Sign will work.

Safe T-Signs don't stick to aluminium or plastic doors or door panels and body work which has been 'filled' following body repair. 

Are magnetic signs safe to use on the roads and on my paintwork?

Magnetic car door signs have been used on cars for many years.  They are trialled and safe up to 70mph.  They won’t damage your paintwork.  Safe T-Signs come with instructions to help you get the most out of them and to use them safely.

Are towing accidents a problem?

On average vehicles which tow light trailers are involved in more than four personal injury accidents every day in Britain. At busy periods the figure is likely to be much higher. There is some indication that tow combinations are slightly more likely to be involved in severe accidents involving death or severe injury.  Also, the overwhelming majority of all accidents take place at a junctions where drivers who are towing are particularly vulnerable.

I have a motor home and I tow my car behind it.  Can I use a Safe T-Sign?

If you have metal doors on your mobile home then they can be used in the same way as for a car or any other vehicle.  A number of our customer have used Safe T-Signs with motor homes because they are aware that other drivers don’t expect to see a car towed behind a motor home. 

Are Safe T-Signs visible in the dark?

Safe T-Signs are particularly helpful if you are towing in the evenings and at night as they are highly reflective. Safe T-Signs really stand out in the dark and let other drivers know that you are towing and to expect a trailer to follow your vehicle.

Why do I need Safe T-Signs - my insurers pick up the bill if I have an accident?

Accidents can lead to death and serious injury.  All of us should do all we can to prevent road accidents taking place.  Accidents involving trailers tend to have greater consequences for more people.  They can cause hours of delay for other drivers, even when they involve no other vehicles and you may lose valuable and irreplaceable possessions.  

Whatever kind of trailer you’re towing, Safe T Signs mean Safe Towing! Be seen and be safe when you emerge from junctions or roundabouts, and when you are towing in the dark.

Buy Safe T Signs from our website here:  http://www.safetowing.co.uk/buy-now.htm

Don't rely on assumptions ... Be Safe with Safe T-Sign

Safe T-Signs are on sale at £22.45 per pair, including postage (UK only).  Order on-line from www.safetowing.co.uk

　
Don't assume anything.... don't assume other road users have seen you, let alone your trailer.

There are situations when your trailer is obscured - at junctions and busy roundabouts, by buildings or hedges, or simply when they are low and out of the eye line of other road users. These are the times when having a Safe T-Sign can let other drivers know that you are towing.

Safe T-Signs are high visibility and reflective. They stand out so that other drivers will notice you when you are out and about on the road, where it matters.

Sometimes other drivers may not appreciate that you're towing and so won't see your trailer or appreciate that you need more room and will take longer to accelerate and brake.

　
What we see depends largely on what it is that we expect to see ...

"... Most of us at one time or another have experienced pulling out and narrowly missing a bicycle coming from the direction which you've just looked. Errors of this type are common because drivers are generally looking for cars or lorries but not for smaller objects such as bicycles or motorcycles which they fail to see. When we concentrate we don't just look at a particular part of a scene, we look for particular types of objects in that scene. We find it easier to detect objects that we expect to see, and react more quickly to them. Conversely we often fail to see objects that we do not expect to see."
Towing roadcraft the essential towing handbook

Safe Towing with Safe T-Sign
Safe T-Signs are on sale at £22.45 per pair, including postage (UK only). Order on-line from www.safetowing.co.uk

THE DIFFERENCE WHEN YOU TOW – SAFE TOWING

Whatever kind of trailer you’re towing, Safe T Signs mean Safe Towing! Be seen and be safe when you emerge from junctions or roundabouts, and when you are towing in the dark.

Buy Safe T Signs from our website here:  http://www.safetowing.co.uk/buy-now.htm

Another bank holiday, another towing opportunity!

Towing a trailer is different from driving a car.  A vehicle with a trailer is longer and slower.  Accelerating and braking take longer and handling and steering are differently from when you drive a solo vehicle.  

Don't assume other road users have seen you, let alone your trailer. Even the most conscientious of drivers make mistakes.  What we see mainly depends on what we expect to see.   There is a great deal of research and evidence which shows that we often don’t see the unexpected.  We all have experiences of being surprised when we have failed to spot something that we should have seen.  There are also situations when your trailer is obscured - at junctions and busy roundabouts, by buildings or hedges, or simply when they are low and out of the eye line of other road users.

Sometimes other drivers may not appreciate that you're towing and so won't see your trailer or appreciate that you need more room and take longer to accelerate and brake.

Safe T-Signs help other road users drive as well as they can too by helping to alert them that you are towing and know what to expect - that you are longer than just the vehicle and that your ability to steer, accelerate and brake is different from a solo vehicle. 

"I invested in the signs for safety reasons. I was negotiating a large island with my Discovery and twin axle tourer. Some idiot hadn’t realised I was towing a nearly 8m long caravan and tried to slot in behind my car and then realised his mistake. I had to take exceptional driving manoeuvres to avoid a collision. I can express the importance that these signs make to road safety, especially when towing coming out of side roads on to main roads, even in country lanes especially where there are motor bikes as they are on top of you in no time at all. Whenever I tow I make sure these signs are fitted. I would rather be seen than somebody not realise that I’m towing until it is too late. It is a possible life saving product."

 Safe T-Signs

Whatever kind of trailer you’re towing, Safe T Signs mean Safe Towing! Be seen and be safe when you emerge from junctions or roundabouts, and when you are towing in the dark.

Buy Safe T Signs from our website here:  http://www.safetowing.co.uk/buy-now.htm

SAFE TOWING - BE PREPARED

Whatever kind of trailer you’re towing, Safe T Signs mean Safe Towing! Be seen and be safe when you emerge from junctions or roundabouts, and when you are towing in the dark.

Buy Safe T Signs from our website here:  http://www.safetowing.co.uk/buy-now.htm

We’re already into the Easter school holiday.  In a few days it will be Easter weekend.  Encouraged by the good weather I’m sure lots of people are thinking about getting out caravans and boats, or the trailer tent, or simply using their trailers to help them shift either their luggage, or perhaps to help them de clutter.

More than 15% of vehicles are fitted with a towbar.  They tow caravans, horseboxes, boat trailers, box trailers and general purpose trailers.  While Joe Public might think that caravans are the most common type of trailer, they’re only actually about 20% of the trailer market.

Be Prepared
As a tower, you might want to adopt the Boy Scout motto of being prepared.  A memorable quote for me from The Essential Towing Handbook is:

“Anticipating the actions of other road users is critical for safety.   Never assume that other road users have either seen you or are going to react according to the Highway Code.“ (Page 87).

The Handbook also says:

“What we see depends largely on what we expect to see.  You may have experienced at one time or another, pulling out and narrowly missing a bicycle coming from the direction in which you have just looked.  Errors of this type are common because drivers are generally looking for cars or lorries but not for smaller objects such as bicycles or motorcycles which they fail to see.  When we concentrate we don’t just look at a particular part of a scene, we look for particular types of objects in that scene.  We find it easier to detect objects that we expect to see, and react more quickly to them.  Conversely we often fail to see objects that we do not expect to see.”

 We see what we expect to see
Interestingly, various studies on the conspicuity of HGVs and other large vehicles have found that although other drivers should have seen a really large truck, for some reason they didn’t.  We also know that “Failed to look properly” is the most frequently reported contributory factor in accidents and was involved in 40 per cent of all reported accidents.

As a tower, you should do everything you can to ensure that other drivers are more likely to notice that you’re towing a trailer.  Even if you think it’s obvious, the evidence suggests that you shouldn't rely on other drivers spotting the obvious - they might not.  This is well illustrated by the experience of one of our Safe T-Sign users:

“I invested in the signs for safety reasons. I was negotiating a large island with my Discovery and twin axle tourer.  Some idiot hadn’t realised I was towing a nearly 8m long caravan and tried to slot in behind my car and then realised his mistake. I had to take exceptional driving manoeuvres to avoid a collision.   I can express the importance that these signs make to road safety, especially when towing coming out of side roads on to main roads, even in country lanes especially where there are motor bikes as they are on top of you in no time at all.  Whenever I tow I make sure these signs are fitted. I would rather be seen than somebody not realise that I’m towing until it is too late.  It is a possible life saving product.”  AP, Coventry

Safe T-Signs - helping you be seen
Safe T-Signs let other road users see that you’re towing – even if they don’t see your trailer.  Place them on your car doors before you start your journey then peel them off when you get there.  Safe T-Signs are invaluable if you are towing your caravan or simply taking a trailer to the local refuse site.

Other road users can see Safe T-Sign magnetic signs on your car. They’re particularly useful when the vehicle you are towing is out of sight or obscured from view.  Safe T-Signs contribute to your safety when you are out and about on the road, where it matters.

Safe T-Signs are magnetic, reflective in the dark or poor lighting conditions and visible from 50m.  Use your Safe T-Sign when you are towing any kind of trailer – including caravans, low-level trailers, boats, horse boxes and motor bike trailers.

Safe T-Signs

Whatever kind of trailer you’re towing, Safe T Signs mean Safe Towing! Be seen and be safe when you emerge from junctions or roundabouts, and when you are towing in the dark.

Buy Safe T Signs from our website here:  http://www.safetowing.co.uk/buy-now.htm

DUST OFF YOUR BOATS, TRAILERS AND CARAVANS WITH SAFE TOWING

Whatever kind of trailer you’re towing, Safe T Signs mean Safe Towing! Be seen and be safe when you emerge from junctions or roundabouts, and when you are towing in the dark.

Buy Safe T Signs from our website here:  http://www.safetowing.co.uk/buy-now.htm

… A spring in your step

Some hardened towers don’t let the season or the dark get in their way.   For the rest of us, it takes the return of spring and longer and warmer days to get us out of hibernation.  Whether it’s taking the boat out, kitting up the caravan or just having a really good clear out, we get towing again!

As you take things out of mothballs and dust off your paraphernalia, spare a thought for staying safe.

Towing a trailer is different to driving solo.  Towing outfits are longer, slower, take longer to accelerate and brake, and handle very differently from a solo vehicle.  The hazards that you face are different.  

Some of us will also tow in dim light in the evenings, either because we make the most of our days, or because we want to tow while there is less traffic on the roads.  As the light dims our ability to see the road ahead declines – contrast fades, colours fade and edges become indistinct.  Even in the best conditions drivers’ ability to assess the speed and position of oncoming vehicles is reduced at night, so you need to allow an extra safety margin.

Safe Towing

As a responsible road user, the safety of those around you when you are towing is your priority. Safe towing and protecting your family, your property and other road users is your main concern.

Safe T-Signs let other road users see that you’re towing – even if they don’t see your trailer.  Place them on your car doors before you start your journey then peel them off when you get there.  Safe T-Signs are invaluable if you are towing your caravan or simply taking a trailer to the local refuse site.

Other road users can see Safe T-Sign magnetic signs on your car. They’re particularly useful when the vehicle you are towing is out of sight or obscured from view.  Safe T-Signs contribute to your safety when you are out and about on the road, where it matters.

Safe T-Signs are magnetic, reflective in the dark or poor lighting conditions and visible from 50m.  Use your Safe T-Sign when you are towing any kind of trailer – including caravans, low-level trailers, boats, horse boxes and motor bike trailers.

What our customers say

“I still use my Safe T-Sign magnetic signs. I originally used them when towing a small camping trailer behind a medium sized camper van which hid the trailer. Now having a large motor home, I find them a necessity when towing the small trailer and an extra safety feature when towing my Smart car on a small car trailer to avoid lorries tail ending / side swiping, particularly on motorways. I’ve had many people ask me why I use them and they quickly appreciate the sense of them when the safety aspect is explained.”

JS, Runcorn

“I’m a big fan of Safe T-Signs. I use them every time I tow our caravan.  It must be almost 5 years and I would not be without them.  One might be forgiven for thinking that a caravan on tow is visible to everyone, especially other drivers!  However, I believe they afford an extra warning, especially when making a left or right turn from a side road and when negotiating roundabouts.”

PB, Abbots Langley

“I still use Safe T-Signs for towing.  They are an excellent product. I think more caravanners should use them - other motorists actually see you.”

GF, Scunthorpe

“I’ve found Safe T-Sign very handy when towing, especially at night and in bad visibility.  They give other motorists warning that you are a longer vehicle. They are very easy to apply and store.”

AL, Colchester

Safe T-Signs

Whatever kind of trailer you’re towing, Safe T Signs mean Safe Towing! Be seen and be safe when you emerge from junctions or roundabouts, and when you are towing in the dark.

Buy Safe T Signs from our website here:  http://www.safetowing.co.uk/buy-now.htm