Like thousands of Australians restless to be rid of COVID lockdowns, the Robertson family hitched a caravan to their car and set their sights on wide open spaces as soon as restrictions eased.
"As soon as we could we got a caravan and set out for a trip around Australia," mother-of-four Lynette Robertson said.
She and husband Robert are among the one in 13 Australian households with a caravan registered, according to the Caravan Industry Association of Australia.
Demand has reached record highs, according to the association which cited an 80 per cent increase in the number of units imported into the country since 2019.
But after several horror accidents and costly fines for drivers, police and experts are calling for stricter requirements and protections in an industry they say has jumped the gun.
"People think they can buy a caravan, hitch it to their car and head off," Sergeant Nathan Ivey of Townsville Highway Patrol said.
The majority of caravan crashes and incidents he has been involved in were due to uneven or overweight loads.
"I urge travellers to check their weight once they've packed all their gear and before they set out on the road," he said.
"You'll lose control of the car because the caravan will be driving it for you.
"If there's too much weight on the tow ball it will lift your vehicle up and impact how it handles on the road.
"We see a lot of unsafe driving because of that."
Sales over safety
Despite doing lengthy research on their shiny new toy it was not long before the Robertsons began encountering problems with caravanning.
"We found later on that we ran into a lot of issues with what we should and shouldn't be doing, and it was really hard to get that information otherwise.
"Each time we approached the caravan company we bought it off we've ended up doing a lot of the research and work ourselves."
Caravan safety advisor Tyler Tildesley said a lack of knowledge among travellers was a major issue, but he believed the industry had a lot to answer for.
"Customers are told that their dual-cab utes and the bigger cars can tow three and a half tonne, but when you pack in all your gear it's quite easy to exceed that weight," he said.
"So you have an industry that is saying 'yes'. But that's not actually right.
Ms Robertson said she would like to see more of a focus on safety.
"I do think there's a lot more that retailers and industry can do to help customers better understand how these things work because it can be dangerous," he said.
Hefty penalties
Sergeant Ivey has attended his fair share of caravan crashes and urged drivers unfamiliar with towing to educate themselves.
"Not only is it dangerous when you have an inexperienced driver towing an uneven or overweight load, but travellers also need to consider the costs involved if there is an incident," he said.
Such costs can include a void to any insurance claims as a result of negligent towing, or illegal loads.
Meanwhile, the list of penalties that apply can quickly drain a budget.
For example, exceeding the mass capacity of a vehicle will cop a $280 fine, and if any part of a load is not correctly fitted drivers will pay $287 for each section not properly connected.
Exceeding size restrictions — for example, bikes attached to the rear — will see a $287 fine, while failing to control a vehicle or towing unsafely will result in a $239 penalty per breach.
“Prevention is better than cure,” Sergeant Ivey said.
