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U-HAUL: “TRAILER SWAY,” RENTAL TRAILER AND TOW DOLLY ACCIDENTS

September 20th, 2007 by John Campbell

 When driving down any interstate or highway, one is likely to notice the familiar sight of a U-Haul rental trailer. They serve the needs of many families and persons moving from one place to another. Unfortunately, since the 1980s, U-Haul rental trailers have been involved in “trailer sway” accidents which occur when the trailer sways back and forth, resulting a tragic rollover or crash of the vehicle.

In a recent Los Angeles Times 3-part series special report, “Danger in Tow,” a comprehensive investigation by the newspaper utilized more than 200 interviews and reviewed thousands of pages of court records, police reports, and consumer complaints.  The report concluded that the company practices of U-Haul International have increased the risk of towing accidents. (Click here for the Los Angeles Times’ Special Report). Specifically, the investigation exposed four startling observations:

1. The Times discovered U-Haul has allowed customers to tow rental trailers as heavy as or even heavier than their own vehicles – twenty-five years ago, in 1982, U-Haul’s policies required that a tow vehicle weight at least twice as much as the trailer being towed as a safety mechanism. However, in 1986, it curtailed its own safety rules and adopted a rule in which the tow vehicle had to be only 750 pounds heavier than the trailer behind it. The report found that the rule, even in its newest form, has often been ignored by U-Haul dealers and employees.

2. The inquiry also found U-Haul has violated its own trailer maintenance policies in allowing rental trailers to be rented and utilized without timely, thorough safety inspections.

3. The investigation revealed U-Haul has allowed rentals of trailers with bad brakes, or in the cases of some small and midsize trailers, no brakes at all.

4. The report found U-Haul’s user guides for the rental trailers, which provide advice for “trailer sway” situations, have been distributed in a “spotty” fashion by U-Haul employees.

Many of the accidents which have occurred due to “trailer sway” have sadly resulted in serious injuries for the driver and/or passengers in the vehicle.

If you or someone you love suffered an accident involving a rental trailer or tow dolly that swayed, please feel free to call me at 314-241-2929 or e-mail me by clicking here.

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