Are you legally allowed to tow a friend’s car with a rope or strap, or must you get a car trailer or pay for a tow truck?
Is it legal to tow a car in Australia?
It can be – but it depends on where you plan to pull the car and where your driver’s licence is issued from. By towing a vehicle, we mean by hitching one vehicle to another with a ‘chain, rope, fabric, strap or wire’ as per Australian road rule legislation.
The general rule is that you have a licensed driver onboard to control the towed vehicle, and that the item used to tie the vehicles together is both strong enough and also safety-marked as a potential hazard, so you can legally tow a vehicle in Australia safely.
However, there is also another layer of tricky and complex state-based registration to navigate – as each state in Australia is governed by different rules.
Let’s take a look at the requirements in each state with regard to towing one vehicle with another.
Is it illegal to tow a car with another car in NSW?
In New South Wales, it is legal to tow a vehicle if the following conditions are met:
- The space between the two vehicles does not exceed 4m, or if either of the vehicles is a motorbike it does not exceed 3m
- The towed motor vehicle is operated by a licensed driver
- The towed motor vehicle is fitted with appropriate braking and steering mechanisms to mitigate risk in the event of an accident
- A red flag or warning is used across where the vehicles are connected by wire, rope or chain, as to alert of danger. If towing at night, a clear red light to illuminate the area is also mandatory.
The only time a motor vehicle can be towed without someone is if written permission is granted by Transport NSW or a police officer in the event of an accident.
Is it illegal to tow a car with another car in Victoria?
In Victoria it is legal to tow a vehicle under the following conditions:
- The space between the two vehicles does not exceed 4m, and if a motorbike it does not exceed 2.5m
- If a tow line longer than 2m is used, the driver must attach a white or brightly coloured flag, piece of cloth or other similar material, and must be visible for at least 100m on either side of the tow line, attached midway, and be substantially square or rectangular with two adjacent sides at least 300mm long.
Is it illegal to tow a car with another car in QLD, SA, ACT or TAS?
In Queensland, Tasmania, the ACT and South Australia, it is legal to tow a vehicle, however:
- The space between the two vehicles does not exceed 4m, and if a motorbike (or quad bike if TAS) it does not exceed 2.5m
- If a tow line longer than 2m is used, the driver must attach a white or brightly coloured flag, piece of cloth or other similar material
- The material must be substantially square or rectangular with two adjacent sides at least 300mm long; and be attached midway along the towline; and be visible for at least 100m from either side of the warning material
- If towing at night, the warning material must be illuminated by a light attached to one of the vehicles.
Is it illegal to tow a car with another car in Western Australia?
In Western Australia, it is legal to tow a vehicle if the following conditions are met:
- The space between the two vehicles does not exceed 4m, or if either of the vehicles is a motorbike it does not exceed 2.5m
- Any rope, chain or wire used for the purposes of the tow, that is longer than 2m, has a flag or other similar object attached to it, so as to render it clearly visible to traffic approaching the tow laterally
- A competent and qualified person is in charge of the towed vehicle, to control it while on tow, and that person can, in fact, control it
- The conditions are safe to conduct the tow.
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