Yet another trailer cargo accident...

[Steve P.]

On my way back from shopping this afternoon I saw a guy crossing the road in traffic with a primer black car door. As I let him pass in front of me I looked over into Wendy's parking lot and saw a late 60's mustang on a trailer wearing black primer. It looked like the door had fallen out of the car and into the road as the other door was sitting inside the car. The door in his hands looked like a train ran it over and I expect more than likely someone got home and found plenty damage on their car or truck..

I CANNOT express enough how important it is to secure your entire load. I have seen hoods blow off, loose straps, a tailgate drop and be dragged for miles on a lawn equipment trailer and a host of other things that don't only cost you but can cost others as well.. I even stopped a 18 wheeler car hauler once as a car was sliding off the back top rack....

Don't be in a hurry or think (I'm just going a few miles). It could cost a life....

[ralley72]

Like you I have seen alot of things fall off trailers rolling down the road and the drivers having no clue what's failing off. I continually check my straps, secure things I think might wiggly loose  and fly off. The drivers is responsible for his cargo, parts ect. I has following behind a guy one day hauling a load of new cabinets on a open trailer with no tie downs. Sure enough, a couple cabinets came flying out right at me. Nothing happen to my truck because I was paying attention to what was happening.

Mike

[ChgrSteve67]

There are laws on the books that require loads be properly secured and tied down.

Eventally like all other laws the government will step up to protect us against those that choose to ignore existing laws. I figure some day all loads will have to be in an enclosed trailier and any open trailer loads will require a permit like oversized loads. The few screw it up for the masses.

One day I was going down the freeway and saw a person hauling a 6 foot gun safe in the middle of a open trailer and obviously it was not tied down properly. It fell forward and landed on the trucks tailgate and crushed the hell out of the tail gate. 4 guys were trying to stand it back up without much luck.the safe probably weighed 800 pounds.

You can't fix stupid.

[Mopar440+6]

The Mrs. tells me I'm OCD about everything but when I comes to hauling anything, I'll admit I go a little overboard. If I'm hauling stuff in an enclosed trailer, everything gets tied down at least once. If I'm hauling open, I'll use the entire box of straps and chains. Somewhere in the range of two chains and four straps for a single car. If anything is loose it gets tied, ratcheted or chained shut. I guess that's what I get for working in the shipping department of a trailer manufacturer for 2 years.

I've seen too many incidents of something coming off a trailer and causing damage or injury. I've actually had full sheets of plywood flying at me because someone was in too much of a hurry to put a bungee cord or two across the bed of their truck.

[Steve P.]

OH YEAH!! THE PLYWOOD INCIDENT!! About 5 or 6 years ago we had hurricanes here. One after another. People were going nuts buying everything they could think of that they MIGHT need. So I am doing about 45 on US 19N. just North of Clearwater when I see plywood peeling off the roof of a "CAR" and flying through the air.. These numb nuts had a stack of plywood on their roof and were trying to hold it on  ((((( BY HAND )))))!!!!!!!!!  I could not believe my eyes and either could the cop that had turned around and nailed him... So ok, we were in a bad situation. BUT,,,, DO YOU DO SOMETHING THIS STUPID?? ?? ??

[440]

It's hard enough trying to hold a single plywood sheet on a windy day... Let alone on a car going down the freeway  morons 

[RECHRGD]

Many decades ago I worked at a home improvement store.  A customer bought about 40 pieces of 4x8 wall paneling and wanted to just have me tie it on top of his car with some twine.  I refused, but told him if he wanted to do it himself, here's the twine.  He didn't make it one block before the whole load peeled off the car like a deck of cards.  And Yes....He tried to hold the store liable. MORON.

[Brock Lee]

I had a friend that wasn't paying attention and left his tailgate down on his way to a gig. When he arrived he walked around to the back (the cap had no windows) and realized the gate was down and his ENTIRE drum set was GONE. He backtracked and ended up on the interstate where he found his vintage Ludwig kit destroyed.

[Brock Samson]

 That reminds me of my Bass Player in LA left his brand new one off fretless Stingray on the roof of his '69 Caprice, luckily some folks pointing to the roof alerted us before we got on the freeway. And if you know anything at all about LA that's a freakin miracle!    

[six-tee-nine]

OMG that keeps reminding me of the time I picked Up my Charger. The trunk lid was not bolted to te hinges but slid in place just loosely. Since the shop owner I bought it from is a nice guy, he helped me by securing everything. However I forgot to check the rope he tied to the trunk lid and yeah you can guess what happened. On a faster road the rope had loosened and the trunk lid caught air an flew of the car. I totally did'nt even notice what happened until I hear a loud bang and looked in the mirror of the truck and thinking by myself "hmm that looks like a trunklid of a Charger"  "It IS MY trunklid AAAAAAaaaaahhhhhhhh".
The car that followed me from a distance could avoid the lid easy but was kinda mad at me I guess since he was waving his arms pretty brutally an making several unpolite facial expressions to me. At that point my stomach was almost up in my troat of shame...... I remember coming home almost a hour later and my hands still kinda shaked. Nothing further happened or nobody got hurt or damaged but it busts you ego for sure.
The fact that my trunk lid is lightly bent and I might have to look out for a new one does'nt bother me since the outcome of the story could have been alot worse.
I  dont want to think what could have happened when that lid had flown into the windshield of the car behind me if it were a little closer.

So, if you load stuff ALWAYS check everything yourself.....