People hire a car transporter to recover a broken-down car, collect a classic they have bought, take a race car to a circuit or move a vehicle to a scrapyard. It is one of the heaviest trailers a general hire company offers, and most problems have three causes: the wrong licence, poor loading and poor strapping. This article covers all three.
1. Types of car transporter on hire
| Type | How it works | Best for |
|---|
---|---|---
| Fixed bed with ramps | slide-out or detachable ramps, car drives on under its own power or is winched | running cars with normal ground clearance |
|---|---|---|
| Tilt bed | the whole bed tilts so the rear touches the ground, shallow loading angle | low cars, sports cars, non-runners |
| With winch | electric or manual winch at the front | non-runners, cars without brakes |
| Twin axle | two axles, higher payload, calmer towing | practically every car transporter |
Ask the hire company for the bed length (most cars need around four metres or more), the width between the mudguards if they sit above the bed, and the loading angle if your car is low. A general guide to trailer types is in What size trailer do I need.
2. Payload: how much car fits on the trailer
Two figures from the trailer's plate or registration documents matter:
- gross weight, what the trailer may weigh with its load,
- unladen weight, what it weighs empty.
The difference is the payload. As an example, a car transporter rated at 2,700 kg gross with an unladen weight of 600 kg carries a car of up to about 2,100 kg. A hatchback fits; a large SUV or a van does not. The weight of the car you are moving is in its own documents as kerb or unladen weight, plus whatever is inside it.
The second limit is the towing vehicle. Its documents state the maximum braked trailer weight it may tow, and a loaded car transporter exceeds it for many smaller cars. As a rule the tow car should be heavier and more powerful than what you are carrying.
3. Licence: check before you book
This is where most misunderstandings start. Licence rules for towing differ by country and by when the licence was issued, so there is no single answer. The pattern in many European countries is:
- a standard car licence covers a combination up to a set gross weight, commonly in the region of 3,500 kg for car plus trailer together;
- a trailer entitlement or extension is needed above that, up to a higher combined limit;
- the calculation uses the plated maximum weights of both vehicles, not what they actually weigh on the day.
With a car transporter plated at 2,500 kg behind a tow car plated at 2,000 kg, the combination is 4,500 kg on paper even with a small car on the bed, and in many places that is beyond a standard licence. Check the rules for your licence and the country you are driving in before you book. Hire companies have every right to check your licence at handover; how they do it is described in Driver checks for vehicle hire.
4. How to load a car on a trailer
A sequence that works if you do not take shortcuts:
1. Level, firm ground. Trailer hitched to the tow vehicle, which has its handbrake on and is in gear. Never load an unhitched trailer.
2. Ramps slid out or hooked on and their locks checked; on a tilt bed, lower it as the hire company showed you.
3. Drive on slowly and straight with someone guiding you. Running cars in first gear; non-runners on the winch with the cable running straight, not at an angle.
4. Position: the car's centre of gravity slightly ahead of the trailer axles. In practice, keep going forward until the drawbar is lightly loaded. The trailer must never lift behind the car. The permitted nose weight is on the trailer's plate and in the tow car's documents.
5. Secure the car: handbrake, in gear or park, engine off.
6. Strap down, see the next section.
7. Stow and lock the ramps; raise and lock a tilt bed.
8. Walk round: nothing overhangs, trailer lights work, tyre pressures match the plate.
The most common mistake is a car loaded too far back. The nose weight goes negative, the outfit starts to sway at speed and the driver accelerates, which makes it worse. Loading rules for trailers in general are in Braked vs unbraked trailer.
5. Strapping the car down
A winch holds the car only against rolling backwards. Sideways and upwards it holds nothing. The car must be secured independently of the winch:
- Four ratchet straps with a rated lashing capacity suited to the car's weight (the rating is on the strap's label).
- Over the wheels (wheel straps or wheel nets) or to towing eyes and chassis points in a cross pattern. Never to axles, suspension arms or steering parts.
- Tight, not overtightened. Stop after a few miles and re-tension, straps settle.
- Protect edges so straps do not chafe on plastic trim or the edge of the bed.
- Tie off loose ends so they cannot reach the wheels.
If you want to move a car without wheels or a badly damaged one, agree it with the hire company first. They may refuse, and they will have reasons.
6. Driving with a loaded car transporter
- The outfit brakes differently from a car, and the trailer has overrun brakes: avoid braking hard in bends and on descents.
- Speed limits for towing are lower than for a solo car and differ by country. Check them for every country on your route.
- After the first few miles, stop and check the straps and ramps.
- The trailer cuts corners more than the car. Take bends wide.
- Reversing a twin-axle trailer needs small, slow steering inputs. It responds lazily, then all at once.
7. What to ask the hire company
- the trailer's gross and unladen weight,
- whether the winch and straps are included or you bring your own,
- the loading angle and whether the bed tilts,
- the permitted nose weight and where the plate is,
- when the trailer was last inspected or serviced and the condition of the tyres,
- the deposit and what happens if something is damaged.
Photograph the trailer at collection and go through the condition report; the general checklist is in Renting a trailer: what to check. On a car transporter pay extra attention to the ramps, winch and lashing points. They are the parts that get damaged most often and the parts the hire company will certainly inspect at return.
Where Flotello fits
Hire companies running on Flotello list each trailer's key figures, such as payload, bed length and equipment like a winch or straps, together with the price and deposit, and customers book the slot online, even on a Sunday evening. At handover the condition report with photos and signature runs on a phone, so there is no argument about scratches on the ramps at return. Run a hire business yourself? Try it free for seven days after registration; what the system covers is in the help centre.
For what Flotello does in your line of rental, start here: trailer rental software; also car rental software, equipment rental software and campervan rental software.