U-Haul knowingly rents unsafe tow trailers that have the potential to kill customers. A yearlong investigation by the L.A. Times found that U-Haul’s practices unnecessarily expose customers to the dangers of trailer sway.
Traveling downhill or shaken by a sharp turn or a gust of wind, a trailer can begin swinging so violently that only the most experienced — or fortunate — drivers can regain control and avoid catastrophe.
Trailers can sway when towed by vehicles lighter than the trailer. U-Haul regulations allows trailers to outweigh the tow-vehicle by up to 25%, openly flouting guidelines set by automakers. For instance, U-Haul allows a 2007 Crown Victoria to haul 4,400 pounds, even though Ford suggests that the 4,100 pound vehicle tow no more than 1,500 pounds. “Two U-Haul competitors, Penske and Budget only rent trailers to customers renting trucks heavier than the trailers. Safety is the reason.”
The practice has killed dozens of customers…
Most of the statistics are secret, dredged from lawsuits and dragged into the sunlight by Times reporters. 1,173 accidents caused in a three and a half year period in the 70′s involved trailers. 49% of trailer crashes involved vehicles that ignored U-Haul’s own safety regulations, and violated the laws of several states. Estimates suggest that trailers are still responsible for more than one hundred accidents every year.
When accidents do occur, U-Haul places the blame squarely with the customer, who is expected to learn how to safely tow a trailer from a detailed safety manual. Yet the manual is rarely distributed with trailer rentals, and there is no Spanish version. The Chairman of U-Haul, Edward Shoen says that a Spanish version is “a nice idea,” but “we don’t have a big demand for it.”
U-Haul has already altered certain practices: they no longer let Ford Explorers tow trailers, not because the combination is dangerous, but because the Explorers have become “a magnet for attorneys.”
Defying the evidence uncovered by the Times, Shoen is adamant that his vehicles are safe. “Our equipment is suited for your son and daughter. On a scale of 1 to 10, I’d say U-Haul is rated 10 in safety.” — CAREY GREENBERG-BERGER
Driving with rented risks [L.A. Times] (Thanks to Daniel!)
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I’m referring to the trailers, not the trucks. I agree they need to maintain the trucks, and even their trailers, but its not uhauls fault if someone rents a trailer their car (or the load) can’t handle. Most trailers are just rented from gas stations anyway, there are no ‘uhaul’ employees. Its your responsibility to get the trailer you need, that will work with your vehicle, and to operate it safely. If you can’t do that, hire someone else to move it for you.
You know, i would rent deadly trailers.
because dead customers dont post here!
@spanky:
I agree. Most, but not all, college kids might remember to check out the specs on their vehicle and how much it can tow, if they know how to in the first place.
None of these uhaul supporters and consumer bashers can tell me that it is always solely the fault of the customer not knowing their specs. Shouldn’t it be the responsibility of the company renting these trailers out to customers to know how large or how small they should rent out? These are THEIR trailers, btw.
@lilmiscantberong: I’m sure your husband is doing the best job he can. It doesn’t change the fact that U-Haul rents garbage and they know it. It doesn’t change that the reservation system is broken. And it doesn’t change the shady crap that they pull.
When I moved a few years ago, I went with a U-Haul truck. The truck had some… problems. The alignment was off, forcing me to keep the wheel cocked 90 degrees to the right in order to drive straight. When braking, I had to crank the wheel 90 degrees to the left to keep from flying off the road, because the brakes were ruined as well.
I called the local office as soon as I got home and let them know of the problems, and they refused to fix them (not severe enough to warrant a new truck, of course). I could not get another truck on such short notice, so I took it, and drove the next day to my new apartment (the drive was terrifying).
Now, part of any rental policy is that you have to fill the tank before you drop off the vehicle, or they charge a crazy amount of money per gallon to fill it. The truck handled so poorly because of the alignment, that I ended up hitting one of the U shaped poles at the end of the pumps. Did a lot of damage to the side of the truck.
Now the drop off place was not a U-Haul “dealer,” but a local business that held onto the U-Hauls until someone else picked them up… the guy was under contract, and couldn’t get out just yet. Of course, when I dropped off the truck, you can bet the guy at the local office asked me what happened. I told him, and he was extremely apologetic, wrote on the paperwork that there was no external damage, and documented both issues I reported.
Well, after a month or so, I notice a charge on my credit card for several hundred dollars. Of course I call U-Haul, and they say the external damage was my fault. They also don’t care about whatever problems were in the truck… until I threaten to call a lawyer, when they promptly remove the charge from my card.
It was a frustrating experience, and I wish I’d known about sites like uhaul-sucks.com beforehand. I used Budget last time, and the truck was wonderful, so I’d probably be ok reccomending them.
Oh, the gas station? The pole I hit was ok, but the paint was scraped off of it. I made sure to go over during a non-peak time and repaint it for them… sure, the truck being a piece of crap was the reason I hit it, but it’s not the station’s fault either.
My favourite UHaul experience was with their 2nd largest truck. A move from Connecticut to Chicago with brakes that grinded every time I would apply them, and transmission that wouldn’t let me go above 60, and no working turn signals. In the middle of nowhere that was no problem, but hitting rush hour in Chicago and trying to make lane changes was nigh impossible. Both myself and my passenger were making hand signals and trying to get other drivers’ attentions.
Dropped it off at the party rental store that they told us to drop off at and told the fellow working there. He said “Sure, it’ll get fixed immediately”, then gave a wink and started laughing.
I worked at UHaul for a while.
The training process and requirements are pretty crazy (tough).
The place i worked at was in a big ghetto city and we always got the worst of the worst when it came to vehicles and trailers.
However, we were very stringent when it came to safety. If it wasnt fit for the road it wasnt going out.
The downside though? It’s the honor system. You rely on the employees to be honest in making judgment calls about each piece of equipment. I did my job well, but I knew a few people that just went through the QC checklist without even looking at the trailer/truck (especially on a day when they are in a bad mood or tired).
Corporate takes alot of pride (honest or not) in running the company like a family business, and our regional manager was always very tough during inspections.
So yeah… in a situation like this I find the bad apples at the bottom of the company ladder to blame for being slackers.
Just an additional note. The one thing I REALLY HATED about working for UHaul… is that 75% of the trucks on our lot were 1989 Ford Diesels… in 2003… seriously UHaul… wtf???
Penske only keeps trucks on for 3 years before selling them off.
From this text:
When accidents do occur, U-Haul places the blame squarely with the customer, who is expected to learn how to safely tow a trailer from a detailed safety manual. Yet the manual is rarely distributed with trailer rentals, and there is no Spanish version. The Chairman of U-Haul, Edward Shoen says that a Spanish version is “a nice idea,” but “we don’t have a big demand for it.”
Were in America, the foundation of our country was in English. There should be not even a thought of having them in Spanish.
Here in Canada U-Haul trucks and trailers are all registered in Arizona, like the USA. Turns out, the “Canadian” fleet is as old and busted as the USA vehicles. Did someone mention “busted”? In October of 2005 CTV television investigative program W-5 looked into U-Haul’s safety record:
[www.ctv.ca]
Reporters rented a total of thirteen trucks in four provinces; all failed provincial safety inspections. The truck rented in Calgary was deemed too dangerous to be on the road at all, and had to be towed away. U-Haul’s Canadian VP, Claude Boucher, was refreshingly candid:”There’s no excuse for that, there really isn’t.” He added “We’re not proud of our safety record.”
I’m guessing Mr. Boucher doesn’t work for U-Haul anymore.
@DearEditor: Interesting, yet not surprising. I wonder what our U-Haul schill has to say about that? Oh, that’s right, it must be the customer’s fault that the half the trucks failed OPP inspection.
“their lives are worth more than $19.95 a day.”
So when did anyone really pay $19.95 for one of U-Haul’s $19.95 “deals?” I rented a $19.95 pick-up from Uhaul for about three hours, declining their extra “services” such as insurance (I already have it, thank you very much). The final tab: $120.
I could have saved part of that by filling up the tank, but I was racing back to try to avoid a parking ticket for my own car which was parked on the street in front of their store, because they wouldn’t let me park on their property.
I will NEVER use U-haul again. They are scammers and as I read in the Times this morning, unsafe as well. The next time I needed a pick-up, I borrowed one from a friend. Maybe an imposition, but at lest I was alive, not lied to and not fleeced for $120.
I have no proof – but I’ve heard for years – and your stories corroborate this:
UHaul has no maintenance program (outside of oil changes) – they run the vehicles until they break. Then they fix them.
Do have to put some of the onus on the customers- I’ve seen enough already-overloaded POS cars/trucks towing U-haul trailers.
Somewhere I picked up that the U-Haul franchisees send the badly maintained “corporate” owned trucks across country since they don’t want to have the better trucks leave their local area.And as for U-haul trucks I will never use them- Penske all the way. Also Penske sometimes has lift equipped trucks which are easier to rent on the weekends when businesses aren’t using them. These are good if you have heavy stuff to move (boxes of books, car parts) or are in a city with not alot of room to run a ramp out.
The best move I made was with a Penske from the Southeastern US to the Northeastern US. They practically gave the truck ( the largest non-cdl 32′ I think ) away since I was going against the travel of most rental trucks. And the best part was that I loaded my car INSIDE the truck along with all of my crappy furniture. Probably not legal but it saved the dolly rental or wear on the the car if towed with a two wheel dolly. And I had loading docks already picked out at both ends of the move.
@DearEditor: There’s been a followup to the CTV report.
Long and short of it: very little has gotten better and the government is still giving them all the time in the world to improve.
Next deadline: Sept 15/07 or else the government says they’ll suspend the business license for 15 days.
Please, Please, Please this type of problem is only the tip of the iceburg. Please go to http://www.dangeroustrailers.com for more problems that face the UITLITY TRAILER INDUSTRY. Over 400 people are killed a year due to PASSENGER CARS TOWING trailers. More people have been killed by trailers comming unhiched than the U HAUL problem. Here is my letter to the WASHINGTON POST that was published.
Safer Driving on the Bay Bridge
Wednesday, May 16, 2007; A14
The Bay Bridge accident is an example of our federal government’s lack of oversight. I traveled to Washington more than 3 1/2 years ago and spoke to officials at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration with the help of my congressman, Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Va.). I passionately encouraged NHTSA officials to take action on utility trailers.
Several problems imperil public safety. The outdated federal guideline that deals with lighting standards, which has not been updated since 1969, does not require working taillights, inspections, and training on how to tow and how to avoid hitching problems.
The guideline permits anybody to build a homemade trailer. It provides oversight only on utility trailers weighing more than 3,000 pounds. By producing a trailer that is 2,999 pounds, a company can avoid federal oversight.
On average, 450 people are killed a year in accidents involving utility trailers. NHTSA should do something about this immediately.
RON J. MELANCON
Glen Allen, Va.
·
@sunwukong:
Thanks for finding the update. Apparently, our governments, North and South, aren’t taking this seriously enough. We need a Consumerist-style ire-raising, editorial-page-blackening, public outcry. Every level of government has some involvement in transportation; let’s rattle some cages.
Go here to see a report:
http://www.vcu.edu/cppweb/tstc/reports/TA14.pdf
Dear Sunwukong:
I’ve been doing something about these types of trailers for over 4 years. I have all the evidence and proof to support my position.
Go to http://www.dangeroustrailers.com thanks
Go here to see more trailers.
WHY DON’T THEY HAVE WORKING LIGHTS??
why are they painted black??
Why don’t they get inspected??
and why do we allow anyone to build one just so long as it will carry under 3,000.
[www.youtube.com]
I have to say, it *is* the customer’s fault most of the time – by now you ought to know that you’re going to get screwed if you rent from U-Haul. Pony up the extra money and rent from Penske. They are definitely (substantially) more expensive, but in this case, I believe you get what you pay for.
@TWinter: Agreed. When I moved 2 years ago I went online and booked a U-Haul. The website asked me how long I needed it for. I said 8 hours since I was moving 30+ miles in the opposite direction. I get there and the pr!ck behind the counter says I can only have it for 4 hours. WTF is the point of having an online reservation and asking me for the time needed if they’re just going to ignore it anyway. Jack@sses!
I’m moving again but thankfully the company is paying for movers.
Ya know, I want to be upset with U-Haul about this, I do, but then I read even the slightest bit of the article (as in, just the part quoted in this story right here on Consumerist) and I gotta say, no, the fault lies squarely on the drivers who are renting trailers which are too large for their vehicle. It is your responsibility to read your owner’s manual, not U-Haul. If you wanna do something stupid, and U-Haul lets you, oh well; you shouldn’t've been doing something stupid.
Ya know how much my car can tow? 2,000lbs. I checked.
Ya know what U-Haul will rent me? Who gives a fuck. If it’s over 2,000lbs, I don’t want it.
Uhaul is awful, they never repair the damage that people cause to the trucks and they (for the most part) don’t care what condition the trucks they are sending out are in. I was rented (for a move from ohio to florida) a manual transmission truck that couldn’t make 50mph (empty) got about 5mpg (not kidding) had over 400,000 miles on it + no A/C.
We did not make the move with it, fortunatly the Uhaul that rented it to us knew it was a POS and took it back without much issue
I guess I’ve just been extraordinarily lucky in my many unwitting dealings with this heinous bastion of corporate evil. My only complaint about any of the many vehicles I’ve ever rented from them was a funny smell in the vehicle cabin, which could just as easily have been attributed to my passenger/assistant.
The one Penske truck I ever rented, on the other hand, blew a head gasket halfway between Wichita and the dark side of the f’n moon. I took that as a sign.
And yet, if U-Haul did refuse to rent someone a trailer based on a gross discrepancy between their vehicle’s towing capacity and their desire to get all their shit in one load, it’d take about three nanoseconds for that customer to file a lawsuit claiming some sort of discrimination was behind it.
@apotheosis: “And yet, if U-Haul did refuse to rent someone a trailer based on a gross discrepancy between their vehicle’s towing capacity and their desire to get all their shit in one load, it’d take about three nanoseconds for that customer to file a lawsuit claiming some sort …”
It’s so true.
Listen, if you ask U-Haul for something, and they provide it, and you pay for it, that’s it; you’re done; end of transaction (well, assuming you return it). The point is, if it wasn’t meant for you, it’s your fault for asking for it. Period.
I’m all for holding corporations liable when it’s fair to do so, but this just strikes me as a case of our ever dwindling senses of personal responsibility.
@jeffj-nj:
“I’m all for holding corporations liable when it’s fair to do so, but this just strikes me as a case of our ever dwindling senses of personal responsibility.”
Why don’t you read the rest of the article then?
Like this part:
“Shoen acknowledged that U-Haul was not in compliance with the state motor vehicle codes but suggested it was a trifling matter. To make his point, he pulled out a news clipping about a 201-year-old North Carolina law barring unmarried couples from living together.”
And this part:
“EXPERTS who examined the trailer for Sternberg’s family found that its brakes were badly corroded and inoperable.
A month earlier, a customer had rented the same trailer in Missouri, and the U-Haul agent told her “it had no brakes,” she said in a deposition.
By the time Sternberg rented it, the trailer had not had a thorough safety check in more than eight months, according to its U-Haul inspection sticker. It had been rented 19 times in that period.
Under U-Haul’s rules, the trailer should have undergone a “safety certification,” including a check of its brakes, tires and other essential parts, at least every 30 days”
And then there’s this part
“In 1986, U-Haul relaxed the rule, requiring that the tow vehicle be only 750 pounds heavier than the one behind it. Over the next few years, the company increased the maximum weight of vehicles that could be hauled on dollies, and lifted a ban on towing with small jeeps and SUVs.
The new policy boosted dolly rentals. But it conflicted with the guidelines of Dethmers Manufacturing Co., an Iowa firm that produced many of the U-Haul dollies used in the late 1980s and 1990s.
Dethmers recommended that the tow vehicle weigh at least 1,000 pounds more than the dolly and the second vehicle combined.”
I’m a firm believer in personal responsibility, but that also applies to corporations too.
@apotheosis: @jeffj-nj:
While I find your fertile imaginations and your childlike sense of wonder charming and all, I’m having a hard time believing you guys are serious.
While pretty much anyone can file a lawsuit for pretty much anything, the actual risk of a successful lawsuit based on small car discrimination is pretty much nonexistent. Particularly compared with the standard, run of the mill negligence claims.
Nevermind the fact that you’re resorting to making arguments based on some bizarre speculative lawsuit, are you seriously arguing that the risk of a ‘hurt feelings’ type lawsuit is greater than their existing risk from negligence claims (which tend to include actual damages)?
to spanky: I cut the “discrimination” part out of my quoted response because I did assume that part wasn’t meant seriously. But, yeah, I think if someone wanted to rent a trailer and they were denied that trailer because U-Haul said it was too big for their car, that person would (and, fwiw, I’d agree with them) say “It’s my car, and my decision. I’m giving you the money, aren’t I? Let me decided what my car can haul.” Would they sue? I don’t know. In today’s lawsuit-happy society, we’re rapidly approaching a time when complain and sue are pretty much synonymous anyway.
to Sudonum: Even reading the parts you quoted, I still can’t bring myself to blame U-Haul for these things. If U-Haul told their customers, “this trailer weighs 2000 pounds” when it really weighed 3000, that would be a problem. If U-Haul told their customers, “oh sure, yeah, the brakes work fine” when in actuality they don’t, that would a problem – a huge problem.
But, from what I’m seeing here, that isn’t what happened. They came right out and said “this trailer doesn’t have brakes” and then some woman rented it anyway. Are you freaking kidding me? Who rents a trailer without brakes? I mean, unless you’ve done some serious modification to your existing brakes, and even then, the risk of a jack-knifed trailer would still bother me. She knew the trailer had no brakes and rented it anyway. Her fault. Period.
In other instances, they “relaxed their rules” and allowed customers with cars within x pounds of the trailer instead of within y pounds, and you think that’s something I missed in my first post? I addressed that issue exactly in my first post. My car can tow 2000 pounds. I know this because I checked in the owner’s manual; every car comes with one. Based on this, I don’t give a fuck what U-Haul’s rules are. I’m not gonna tow more than 2000 pounds.
I don’t expect everyone to be a physics major or mechanical engineer, but I do expect people to realize that heavy things are harder to control. I almost wish I had a 4 year old, just so that I could point out even she knows this.
@jeffj-nj:
Urban legends aside, you still generally have to have some kind of legitimate claim for a successful lawsuit. Refusing to rent a trailer to someone who cannot safely operate it is not plausible grounds for a lawsuit; and again, even if there were some genuine risk of such an absurd scenario playing out, the risks of negligence lawsuits would outweigh it by far. They are knowingly putting not just their customer at risk, but everyone else on the road as well. Particularly if they’re not informing their customers of the risks.
Show me a single successful lawsuit that bears any resemblance to your imagined scenario, and I’ll show you thousands of successful negligence suits.
Would you also take umbrage at U-Haul for refusing to rent trailers to ten year olds, drunk people, and people without drivers’ licenses?
You’re right, I’m actually a paid footsoldier of the U*Haul Public Relations Militia. I was this close to winning over the entire Consumerist readership, but you just had to go and call me out, you clever little yard ape.
It was the “three nanoseconds” thing that tipped you off, wasn’t it? I should’ve gone with something more plausible, to make it less apparent that it was more idle speculation than actual reflection of a probability.
Curses, foiled again. A winner is you. O_o
Come to think of it… you’re right… they are endangering other people by allowing these to go out when they know full well (even if the customer doesn’t) that they shouldn’t. I definitely stand corrected, even before the completely ridiculous question posed later, which I won’t even bother to answer (since now you’re talking about breaking legal laws instead of ones of physics, which is not at all what we have been discussing). Honestly, I had not considered the dangers to others which could easily be avoided by U-Haul not allowing idiots access to their potentially dangerous equipment.
I do stand by the assertion that anyone who tries to tow more than their car can tow (or, really, do anything their car can’t do – take high speed turns in a pick-up, race up a mountain in a sports car, fit 7 people in a sedan, etc) are morons. And, if given the chance, U-Haul should do their part by at least trying to protect the rest of us from these people. That is an excellent point.
Budget will forever get my business. I had to 1-way rent a truck and car trailer from Austin to San Fran.
Went to get the truck and was freaked because the place looked like a disaster, but upon getting to the back I was relieved to see some of the nicest looking moving trucks. Shop owner said he used to rent uHaul, but dropped them because the trucks just were crap and his business suffered for it.
I got a truck with less than 1500 miles on it, drove great, plenty of legroom, and the trailer (thinking I’d get one of those trailers that drags your car behind you) turned out to be a flat bed that my Isuzu Rodeo (93) fit nicely onto and never gave me any reason to dread.
Drop off was a cinch and we made it to San Francisco about 6-8 hours ahead of schedule. Yeah, never rent from uHaul, ever again.
Ya know, I wrote a pretty lengthy post which I kinda liked, but the system seems to have eaten in. The short version is that you’re right, spanky; I had not considered the safety of others. U-Haul is allowing these idiots to put other people in danger, when they just as easily could (and should) not.
I had more to say, but don’t feel like typing it again.
@jeffj-nj:
Apparently you read a different article than I did.
Quote 1:
U-Haul is in violation of at least 14 states vehicle codes by renting trailers that are required to have brakes. They do not. In response to this the CEO brought up the law about couple living together in NC.
I happen to own a trailer that DOES NOT HAVE BRAKES. OH NOES!!! However it is small enough that NONE of the 50 states require it to. How can a company rent equipment that is in violation of the law and then blame the renter for not checking their states motor vehicle code before they rent it. How about trailers WITH brakes but no brake fluid in the master cylinder? When you rent a car do you check the fluid levels before you drive it off the lot?
Quote 2:
This quote refers to U-Haul not completing safety inspections on trailers as their guidelines require. Also not repairing issues that have been brought to their attention by customers returning defective equipment. The woman thought something was wrong with the trailer, she had the U-Haul mechanic check it out. He said it was safe. It wasn’t. She got into an accident. Would she have gotten into the accident if the trailer had been safe and she was pulling it with an undersized vehicle? Maybe, but we’ll never know.
Could you please show me the part I missed about her renting a trailer after being told that the brakes didn’t work? This is what I found:
“They noticed the trailer was in “horrible condition,” Lemons recalled. Springs in the suspension were so corroded that they resembled “stalactites,” he said.
Sternberg called a U-Haul helpline, and a representative agreed that she should exchange the trailer. But the next morning – Sept. 3 – an employee at a local U-Haul center made some minor adjustments and sent her on her way. Hollander said Sternberg was “agitated” about the trailer’s condition but eager to get going.”
Nothing about her KNOWING that the trailer brakes were not working prior to accepting the trailer.
Quote 3:
It’s not a matter of your vehicles towing capacity. I can tow 8500 lbs with my truck. However that DOES NOT mean that I can tow a vehicle weighing 8500 lbs with the car dolly. My vehicle must weigh at least 1000 lbs more than the combination of towed vehicle and car dolly. My truck does not weigh 8500 lbs. They relaxed the rules on the car dollies in order to pump up rentals. Against the wishes of the manufacturer. They didn’t give a damn about whether these vehicle combinations were safe, they wanted to boost their income. And yes, as the article pointed out, the renter could lie about the vehicle they were going to tow with it. But 2 things come to mind, apparently people lying about tow vehicles wasn’t much of a problem before because their rental volume was small. Also why not have the renter sign a Hold Harmless stating that the renter is aware that the tow vehicle has to be x number of pounds heavier than the one being towed. Lord knows you sign enough crap now when you rent anything whats one more piece of paper shoved into the mix?
The article I read also pointed out that Penske and Budget only rent car dollies for use with their rental trucks. Not for use with your personal vehicle.
Also regarding your comment in your first post about lawsuits from being denied rentals, think about this one:
U-Haul won’t rent trailers for use on an Ford Explorer. However I haven’t seen any lawsuits from Explorer owners due to that. And as another poster stated, they will rent to a Mercury Mariner owner. Funny, because it’s the same vehicle.
Dear Readers!!
here is a false quote In general, the state regulations say that trailers below 3,000 pounds must have brakes if they exceed 40% of the tow vehicle’s weight. By that standard, two popular, un-braked U-Haul cargo trailers are frequently in violation of the rules.
If the trailer is under 3,000 pounds no brakes are required. Every state has a different set of rules.
Please go here to see this video.
this happend last month. The hitch is from u haul.
[www.wusa9.com]
Victims Of Bay Bridge Crash Identified
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Created:5/10/2007 4:39:07 PM
Last Updated:5/11/2007 10:05:42 PM
BALTIMORE (AP) — Two-way traffic on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge does not appear to have been the cause of a multi-vehicle accident that resulted in three deaths and five injuries, authorities said Friday, but AAA Mid-Atlantic questioned whether the traffic flow made the crash worse.
With questions about the safety of the two-way traffic being raised, Maryland Transportation Authority Police Chief Marcus Brown underscored that a runaway trailer appeared to cause the
seven-vehicle crash.
“An important point to make is that from the current investigation, it does not appear that the accident was the result of two-way traffic on the bay bridge,” Brown said.
But AAA Mid-Atlantic said a barrier between lanes may have prevented multiple crashes.
“While it’s too early to say, it is quite likely that had the counter-flows of traffic been barrier separated, the multiple collisions that made this crash so horrific may not have
occurred,” said Ragina Averella, a spokeswoman for AAA Mid-Atlantic.
Police identified the dead as Randall R. Orff, 47, and his son, Jonathan R. Orff, 19, both of Millington.
Also killed was James H. Ingle, 44, of Preston.
The Orffs were riding eastbound in a pickup, and Ingle was driving westbound in a car. The SUV that was pulling the trailer that came unhitched also was heading westbound, as were the other
four vehicles involved in the crash.
Averella urged the state to “examine viable ways to barrier separate the traffic flows when mixing directions on one bridge.”
Brown said an investigation was continuing, and an “after action” report would be finished in about two months. Asked about discussions relating to creating a median between the traffic
flows, Brown said: “all of that will be discussed in the after action.”
Although Brown emphasized it was the trailer that caused the accident, he said it will take further investigation to determine whether two-way traffic made the accident worse or harder to avoid once the trailer became unhitched.
“I believe we’ll have those questions answered once we’re finished with the investigation,” Brown said.
Investigators have yet to determine what caused the trailer to break loose. Wind was not considered to be a factor, Brown said.
Police have video footage from the bridge, but it does not shed light on how the trailer came loose, Brown said.
The driver of the SUV, a man police declined to identify, has not been charged or ticketed. Although tests for drugs or alcohol in the driver had not been finished, Brown said the man had not
showed signs of being intoxicated.
Of the five injured, one was in stable condition at the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center. The other four had minor injuries.
The accident happened shortly after 4 p.m. Thursday at the start of the bridge’s westbound span. In all, seven vehicles crashed, including a tanker hauling animal fat and a tow truck.
The bridge, officially known as the William Preston Lane Jr. Memorial Bridge, is the main artery connecting Maryland’s Eastern Shore with the rest of the state. In 1996, three people were killed on the same span when an 18-wheel truck smashed into the back of a stalled sedan.
Who trained this person to Tow???????????
What quailifications did this person have??
more people are killed due to trailers comming unchiched then the rollover with the firestone tire recall. 274 people died from that. Where is the National Highway Transportation admn???
My state in VA is the only state that requires REFLECTOR TAPE ON THE BACK. The company Called CARRY ON TRAILERS TRIED TO KILL THE LAW BECAUSE THEY DID NOT WANT TO SPEND 8 DOLLARS TO IMPROVE THEIR PRODUCT.
Go here to see how much 8 dollars improves these trailers.
[www.dangeroustrailers.com]
THIS JUST HAPPNED LAST WEEK…..
State says trailer in fatal wreck didn’t meet codes
By Leslie Slape
Jun 15, 2007 – 09:05:28 am PDT
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A trailer involved in a fatal accident did not have an emergency breakaway device that would have locked its brakes when it came loose from the truck, according to a commercial vehicle inspection report.
John Schill’s 1984 flatbed trailer detached from his 1971 Kenworth dump truck in the 2300 block of Pacific Way, Longview, on Dec. 23, according to Longview police. Investigators said the trailer crossed the center line and hit an oncoming car driven by Henry Bonkowski, 87, of Longview, who died several hours later.
Schill, 69, of Kelso, has pleaded not guilty to vehicular homicide. Charging documents allege that Schill drove a motor vehicle in a reckless manner and/or with disregard for the safety of others, and that this action led to Bonkowski’s fatal injury. Schill’s trial is set for Aug. 20.
The Washington State Patrol’s commercial vehicle enforcement division examined the truck and trailer after the accident, finding nine equipment violations. Six of the violations, all involving the truck, were not serious enough to take the vehicle out of service, said Steve Gee of the commercial vehicle division.
The three most serious violations, all involving the trailer, were:
• Trailer brake lights inoperative on both sides.
• Electric trailer brakes inoperative. • No operable emergency breakaway device on trailer.
Gee said he could not tell by looking at the report if the brakes were inoperative before the crash or if they became inoperative as a result of the crash.
However, the lack of breakaway device meant the trailer could not automatically stop when it came loose from the truck, he said. There should have been a cable coming out of a black box on the side of the trailer linking the truck’s master cylinder to the trailer’s electric brakes, he said. When the trailer detached, the resultant pull on the cable should have ignited the battery to lock the brakes, he said.
[216.239.51.104]
help its the attack of the loose trailers. Where is our government??
Trailer runs into house on Rt. 6
WTVG– June 18, 2007 – A Wood County couple who lives on US Rt. 6 got a big surprise when a flatbed trailer broke loose from its truck and ran right into their living room. The couple was sitting in the room at the time.
The wife had minor injuries and was treated at Wood County Hospital. The accident did a lot of damage to the structure of the house. The couple is forced to stay with relatives for the time being.
The accident is still under investigation. A sheriff’s department spokesperson says the driver of the Ford pick-up truck will probably be cited for failure to secure his load.
Here is another U Haul Story
Rob’s Story
My terrible experience began on April 4th 2005. My fiancé (who by the way was 4 months pregnant during all this) and I had decided to move from Albuquerque, New Mexico to Birmingham Alabama. We decided to rent a U-haul trailer to move our things.
The truck that we had, a 2001 Ford Ranger pickup had a class 1 hitch (200 tongue weight, 2000 towing weight.) U-hauls website stated that I could tow a 5×8 foot trailer safely. I reserved the trailer several weeks in advance. But the max weight of the 5×8 trailer is 1800 pounds. I was afraid that I would be really pushing it if I got this one. It was right on the border of what the truck could handle. So the day of the move I change the order and got the smaller 4X8 even though it meant that we were going to have to leave some of our belongings behind.
I arrived at a Corporate U-Haul dealer on the afternoon of Monday the 4th of April. I again tried to go the safe route and went to a U-Haul corporate location rather than a fly by night franchise. Before I went to the dealer I called to ask about having a wiring harness installed on my truck, so the lights on the trailer would work. They told me that it would cost $25 and to bring my truck over. When I arrived they surprised me by telling me that not only was there no one to connect the wiring harness, but also it would be $50. They told me that there was another location in town that I could go to. They then suggested that I go ahead and rent the trailer and take it to the other location to have the lights hooked up. I looked at the clerk and asked, “So you want me to drive across down in rush hour with a trailer with no brake lights?” He just sort of looked at me with a strange look on his face until he realized what he was asking..
I finally bought U-Haul’s Tap-A-Lite and hooked up the lights myself. When I got done another worker brought the trailer over to my truck and started to mount it on my hitch. He stopped all of the sudden and told me that I needed a different ball size to hook up the trailer. He said that I had a 1&7/8? ball and the hitch required a 2? ball. I explained to him what I had read on the company website and that it stated that I could use a 1&7/8? ball. He finally looked down at the tongue of the trailer and read the label that explained the different ball sizes that could be used.
Finally after and hour and a half we were on our way home. Ten minutes after leaving the dealership the turn signal on the trailer stopped working. I was able to stop at an auto parts store and repair the wiring and again we were off. We loaded the trailer and got up early the next morning. We placed our two cats in kennels in the back of the truck and both our dogs in another. We stopped in Clovis New Mexico to pickup some items that belonged to us before leaving the state, only to find that we couldn’t take everything we wanted because we had gotten the smaller trailer. In fact some of the things we left behind simply because we were afraid of overloading such a small trailer. We arrived in Lubbock on the afternoon of the 5th and Dallas on the afternoon of the 6th. We took our time making it across Texas because of all the bad weather.
On the morning of the 7th we headed out of Dallas and arrived in Shreveport, Louisiana around 2 in the afternoon. At about 2:30 p.m. is when all hell broke loose. While on I-20 near exit 17 I heard a loud bang behind me. I looked in the rear view mirror and noticed the trailer was leaning to the right side. It was swaying back and forth and a causing the truck to shake violently. I was already in the left hand lane, so I just let off the gas in an effort to slow down as I started to drift to the left. The next thing I knew the truck suddenly was facing 90 degrees to the right and we were going across three lanes of traffic. Just when I thought we were about to hit the wall we swung back to the left 180 degrees, and then the truck started rolling, passenger side first.
When I woke up everything was confusing and I was disoriented. I was upside down. I heard my fiancé? calling out to me, and all I could tell her was that I was hurt. She had already crawled out of the truck but I was trapped inside. There was no way for her to get me out, she undid my seatbelt and tried to get me free, but just couldn’t. Finally people that stopped to help were able to pull me out of the passenger side window.
The next thing I remembered was that people were all around; my black lab puppy was licking my face and wouldn’t leave me alone. Finally the Police and Fire Department arrived. The Police took our statement. We were both placed on back boards and take to the hospital. I was told they would look for our animals, only the lab puppy had seemed to have made it. There was no sign of the other animals.
The hospital did a cat scan on me and an ultrasound on my fiancé. She checkout just fine but they told me I had a concussion. They treated a nasty scrape on the top of my head where glass was imbedded into the skin. Before I go any further I have to thank with all of my heart the ER staff of St. Mary Shumpert Hospital. They treated us wonderfully. The hospital staff got us a free taxi and a cheap hotel room in an effort to help us.
Once we arrived at the motel I called U-Haul to report the accident. They asked me a ton of question about what happened, but not once did they offer an apology or ask if we were ok. When I explained that we were stuck in a motel until my in-laws arrived from Delaware and our funds were limited, U-Haul refused to help. They went on to say that they couldn’t even file the accident report because they had no record of my rental, and needed my rental agreement number on the receipt. I explained that the receipt and paperwork on the rental was in the truck, with the trailer and that everything was in impound. I further explained that I wouldn’t be able to get there until the following Monday.
On Saturday the 9th of April my in-laws arrived. I had never met them before, so it was a little strange meeting them for the first time, especially when under these circumstances. I couldn’t have like a pair of people more. They took my fiancé and I and got us some clothes and got us checked in to a decent hotel. (We had been staying in a crap hotel, and wearing the same clothes for 3 days.) They welcomed me into the family as well as anyone ever could, but back to my story.
On the way in they told us they saw a dead cat on the interstate. My father in-law and I went out the next day and confirmed it was my fiancés cat.
Because it was a Saturday, we were unable to do anything in preparation of retrieving our things or dealing with U-Haul. They wouldn’t do anything until I had the rental number, and that was in the truck which was in impound along with the trailer and everything we had owned.
Finally Monday arrived and we set out to get the trailers swapped out and get the hell out of Louisiana. We went to the Police station and retrieved our firearms. We then headed to the pound to check on my puppy. We then went to impound yard to retrieve the rental agreement and take a look at the truck and trailer. When we arrived I was shocked by what we saw. It was the first time I was able to see the damage. The roof of the truck was caved in; it was amazing that I had survived. My head rest was now out the back window above the roof.
The most amazing part was when we found that the trailer was missing its right tire. I found it a few minutes later in the bed of the pickup. Apparently it was found by the tow truck company at the time of the wreck and placed there. It appeared that the axle just snapped at the hub.
We took as many pictures as we could and then called U-Haul. I went ahead and answered all of their repetitive questions. Finally I asked about getting a replacement trailer. The woman on the other line told me that all she does is take the reports and I would have to call another department to arrange another trailer. I called the number she gave me only to get the run around again. First they weren’t going to give me another trailer. Then they were but wanted me to pay for it. Then they didn’t want me to pay for it but wanted me to pay the towing and impound bill on the old trailer. Finally the decided to give me the trailer that I asked for. The kicker was that they said I had to go to a location to pickup the trailer 30 miles away, even though there was a location 5 minutes away that had the size we wanted. We drove to the location the told us we ?Had? to go to. Yet when we arrived were told to go back to the location that we had requested in the first place. We proceeded to try to pickup the trailer only to get asked for a cash deposit for it. After about 30 minutes of explaining that I wasn’t going to give them any money they agreed to give me the trailer. They only problem was they didn’t have anyone that knew how to hook up the mess of wires on the trailer to my Father in-law’s truck. Finally we were able to get everything hooked up but had to get an even bigger trailer than we needed. We drove to the impound to get our stuff. It took us about an hour to unload and load the new trailer. Almost everything that could be broken inside the trailer was. My computer, my laptop, our TV, VCR, anything electronic was destroyed even though I had carefully packed the trailer.
After we got everything loaded and took a last look at everything we headed to the hotel. The next morning we picked up our dog from the pound and continued on the Birmingham. We finally arrived in Birmingham exactly one week after we left Albuquerque.
A few days after we arrived in Birmingham I had to return to the ER. I had continued (and still do) have headaches, nausea, etc. The doctors did another cat scan and told me that I have post concussion syndrome. My memory doesn’t work like it used to and my fiancé constantly complains that I forget things. Looking back I think that if it wasn’t for the love of our friends and family and the love of God that we would have never survived.
A week after getting to Birmingham I received a phone call from the animal shelter in Shreveport. They had found our other dog the Friday before. She had been hiding under a house near the interstate where the wreck had occurred. My fiancé went the next day with my boss to get her. She didn’t have any injuries and is doing fine, just like my other dog. We still are awaiting word about our other cat “Mason” and can only hope that the cat that died met his fate quickly.
I received a call from the adjuster for Uhaul. He state that their “impartial expert witness” inspected the trailer and found that the reason for the accident was the hitch that was on our truck They claim that the hitch failed causing the truck to fish tail, which then caused stress on the hub and caused it to snap. I tried to tell the adjuster that this was contrary to what the witness statements from the accident said…but he wouldn’t listen…
Update January 2006
Our daughter Aris Kathryn Shank was born in October of 2005. Healthy and well. My memory is back to normal, however my back still bothers me on a daily basis. We still haven’t found an attorney that will take the case. I’m starting to believe that if you have enough money you can screw over whom ever you want and get away with it. Uhaul has never offered any type of compensation and are now billing me over $1600 for the trailer that was destroyed in the wreck. Even though I have two witnesses that state just the opposite of what their “expert witness” says. If anyone has any information about Uhaul and how they maintain their trailers please email me.
Thanks,
Rob Shank-Mr. Antiuhaul
Article of June 25, 2007 – this guy is lucky to be alive.
This is also common in the RV industry. We have manufactured a towing systemt that absolutely ELIMINATES trailer sway for 13 years and have yet to get even one OEM to build it into the travel trailer. Every year people are killed when they are just trying to take a nice vacation.
See http://www.NoSway.com for details.
Okay, here’s an analogy:
I have a computer that needs a new hard drive. I go on the Internet and look up the specs for my computer (not having a manual since I bought used) and it says I can use X type of hard drive. However, I like to be sure that I’m doing things right, so when I go to the store I ask the salesperson what drive I should use.
He says “Oh, you can use Y type of hard drive too, it’s better.”
“Really? Because I read that X is what I’m supposed to use –”
“No, no, Y will be fine with your computer.”
So I buy Y, return home, and find out it doesn’t work.
Am I an idiot for choosing to trust the word of a professional over my own untrained judgment?
Similarly, would I be an idiot for actually believing that someone who’s paid to work with trailers might actually know more about trailers than I do?
I’m really puzzled at the victim-blaming behavior I see around here sometimes. Customers operate on the assumption that the people who have trained and worked in a field are more knowledgeable than them, and therefore they trust the workers’ judgment — this is how specialization in an economy is supposed to work. We shouldn’t be blamed for assuming that a company isn’t going to screw us over, ignore state regulations, or attempt to flout the laws of physics.
I’m probably the first person that would call for people to take a minute and figure out what they’re driving. Like during the Ford + Firestone fiasco, those fatalities and injuries could have been prevented if the drivers had listened during drivers ed and stayed calm (Car & Driver never got an Explorer to magically flip itself over during a simulated blow-out).
However, in this instance, if U-Haul wants to be absolved of any wrong-doing they need to take due diligence in informing their uneducated customers the perils of towing a trailer. Still, U-haul is not absolved from failing to properly maintain their equipment.
If you’ve never pulled a trailer before, and you are unable to take the time to properly familiarize yourself with towing a trailer, don’t rent or borrow a trailer to move. Rent a truck and get someone to follow you in your car.
I’ve rented one U-Haul trailer. It was a POS (of course) and goober at the shop didn’t hook up the wiring correctly (of course). Sorta disturbing when you figure how many trailers this man hooks up in a day… But it made it from Orlando to Atlanta with only one roadside repair…at least it made it.
As far as the towing specs: No U-Haul should use some common sense in renting. However, who rents a trailer without knowing what thier vehicle is rated to tow. That’s just ignorant.