Like many on here i once coupled up a trailer with the parking brake off… Luckily there was no damage or injury on that occasion but i have been paranoid about it ever since.
So many times, just as i am about to put the red line on (last of course), I chicken out, climb down and look in the cab to make 100% sure that the brake is on.
It seems to me that it would be an easy thing for manufacturers to put some kind of indicator on the back of the cab that we could see before we make the connection. Not a light but a mechanical flag so that it would not fail.
on most trucks i have driven recently there is either a warning alarm or someone shouting at you"WARNING PARKING BRAKE NOT APPLIED"if you open the door without putting the handbrake on the unit…perhaps this should be on all trucks.?
part of tossco checksheet is to check that the audible warning works so i always put my foot on the footbrake, release the handbrake and open the door before i go and find my trailer. im surprised an audible warning isnt standard fit across all trucks these days
yes but i turn the ignition on to check all the lights anyway. fog lights wouldnt work without the ignition on. annoyingly, the reverse siren and lights dont work without the engine running so i cant check them. i wont stick it in reverse with the engine running and handbrake on to go and look. you couldnt in a manual anyway but most of their trucks are autos. they insist on checking the unit over before you pick your trailer up
i’ve done the same thing and damaged two parked cars so i mean no offense when i say no matter how many warning lights, beepers and signs there is no way you can eliminate the stupidity of the driver. some accidents will always occur especially if you get side tracked during hooking upto a trailer.
my dads actros not sure wa reg as its northern irish plated 54 plate i think, anyways, if door is open and handbrake is off an audible sound around the cab bleeps sayin handbrake not on or somthing similar
we once had an ex tesco day cab scania that had some sort of device fitted onto the inside of the door by the hinge that popped out when the door was open and if handbrake was off who make a load whistling noise and air would come from behind the dash,
in theory meanin if the handbrake is released u cannot move the truck with the door open !
Had a potentially nasty incident last year when unhitching my drawbar trailer to get on a site. On my old truck the hitch pin used to be a b!tch to release if the trailer and unit werent exactly right, so the first thing i used to do when dropping the trailer was to pull the pin to see if would release, if it came out freely then i would put on the trailer brake, unplug leads, put the legs down etc.
Now on this occassion i was on a slight gradient, i pulled the pin and to my horror the trailer suddenly started to roll back down the road rolled about 4 feet until the air run out of the broken lines and the brakes locked on Luckily there was no cars or anyone behind it, plus the trailer wasnt fully loaded so although it shifted none was spilt
Was a very lucky lucky boy that day, even the boss said “you wont forget to put that parking brake on again will you?” and he was right, first thing i do is make sure its on
Luckily there was no cars or anyone behind it, plus the trailer wasnt fully loaded so although it shifted none was spilt 
