hi everyone, my first post on here, i had been driving class 1 for many year using box trailers,then i retired, have gone to work for an agency for a few days a week, have done a few runs with curtainsides,my question is do you have to strap the load down,when its shrink wrapped pallets, some drivers say yes and some say no,[ i am aware the curtains are not restraints] cheers
My understanding of load security is to prevent any forward, sideways or rear movement of pallets.
Fortunately, most of our gear is solid so ratchet straps are ideal. For tall shrink wrapped pallets, simply use an internal strap and fasten to the trailer bed.
In some cases it’s only necessary to secure the back two pallets.
It’s all about common sense. Much better to use too many straps than not enough. If vosa stop you and discover your load is insecure, then it’s your licence at the end of the day which is at risk.
Many a driver caught out through incorrect load restraining.
For more info just Google vosa/ load restraining. It should take you to the right place.
An after thought since i posted, didn’t you cover this during dcpc course drive?
thank for the info, ref cpc course waste of time,instructor was more interested in talking to himself, probably because i was the only one in the group of 12 that understood english,
I was told by VOSA that every pallet has to be strapped…except the ones behind the post. We all take chances now and again…and i loaded 22 pallets of china clay in bags…they wasnt going anywhere at 3/4 of a ton each, so i set off from the south of france, got back into the uk, and proceededn up the A23 towards the M23…of course VOSA was waiting…i got pulled in, they checked all my paperwork, my vehicle and trailer, then just before saying goodbye…he said…can i just have a look in the back doors…as i opened them he said…wheres your straps …well in the end i had to strap every 2 bags with 18 straps…then he gave me a fine of £100…so be aware driver, be safe, and cover your backside, its not an endorsable offence ( insecure load ) but many choose to pay rather than go to court and pay far more to prove it wasnt…a case of theyre right…we the professionals are always wrong. Plus the fact that Vosa can now keep most of their takings ■■
A curtainsider,is just a flat that doesn’t need to be sheeted for weather protection of the load.Everything else regarding load security is as for a flat.
Don’t be fooled by high-loading curtains, either. I was told by the TM not to bother strapping ‘cause the curtains can take 10.5t each’. So I didn’t that day. 2nd drop, pallet of packaged paper which didn’t have enough shrink had its contents slide over itself and ended up leaning against the curtain (so can’t be forklifted). Had to restack it all. Put ratchets round the pallet itself then strapped the pallet to the bed.
It doesn’t take five minutes to strap something down, so you may as well do it. The only pallets I wouldn’t bother with are small things which won’t fall over, bags of ‘packing peanuts’, the sort of thing which doesn’t matter if it shifts a bit.
Also, if you don’t strap, you leave yourself only one line of defense against things falling out of your truck. What happens if you haven’t clicked in the exterior strap locks properly, or the curtain fails? May as well have two lines of defense, especially with heavy stuff like paper.
According to DV$A, all loads must be secured to prevent forwards, backwards and side movement. Loads up to 400kg can have internal restraints, loads over that must be strapped to the deck. The last pallets on the load must be secured to prevent movement as the back doors aren’t considered load bearing.
From memory, might be a little iffy, but it’s how we do it.
I’ve had 400kg mentioned to me before so you’re probably right there. Then there’s also the consideration of strength of the restraints. I THINK they have to bear 100% of the weight forwards and backwards and 50% sideways?
Also, strapping it down properly. A 7 foot long stack of boards won’t be held with one strap halfway down. The curtain puffing out when exiting the A38 taught me that. The wagons I normally drive usually have lighter straps in the cab, so any very big item like that gets strapped to the pallet itself in addition to to the deck, shrink wrapping is ■■■■■ and warehouse staff never put enough on anyway.
iomex:
I’ve had 400kg mentioned to me before so you’re probably right there. Then there’s also the consideration of strength of the restraints. I THINK they have to bear 100% of the weight forwards and backwards and 50% sideways?Also, strapping it down properly. A 7 foot long stack of boards won’t be held with one strap halfway down. The curtain puffing out when exiting the A38 taught me that. The wagons I normally drive usually have lighter straps in the cab, so any very big item like that gets strapped to the pallet itself in addition to to the deck, shrink wrapping is [zb] and warehouse staff never put enough on anyway.
What’s on your pallets and how heavy are they?
Oh I’m agency so it could be anything one day to the next. In that instance it was about 20x 100mm HDF boards, was too heavy to lift once they shifted so I just made sure they were undamaged and handballed them onto a forklift.
I just use loads of straps now, if I have 20 on board I may as well use them all.
The worst one was a BMW engine shrink wrapped to a pallet. Like…how the ■■■■ do you secure that? If I tie it down firmly I’ll break something. First corner and it’ll shift itself loose as there’s no securing points.
iomex:
Oh I’m agency so it could be anything one day to the next. In that instance it was about 20x 100mm HDF boards, was too heavy to lift once they shifted so I just made sure they were undamaged and handballed them onto a forklift.I just use loads of straps now, if I have 20 on board I may as well use them all.
The worst one was a BMW engine shrink wrapped to a pallet. Like…how the [zb] do you secure that? If I tie it down firmly I’ll break something. First corner and it’ll shift itself loose as there’s no securing points.
Boards are a pain, you can never have too many straps on that stuff!
Yeah, at least I learned it 5 minutes from the drop with no damage, than a load of crap spilling onto a dual carriageway. I’m always making sure the curtains are done up properly and there’s dunnage/padding where needed. Tbh, this is the sort of ‘real learning’ you get after you pass your test, CPC doesn’t really touch this other than ‘pliz strap load’.
ruff rider:
thank for the info, ref cpc course waste of time,instructor was more interested in talking to himself, probably because i was the only one in the group of 12 that understood english,
You mean the instructor spoke ENGLISH 
What about a load that is so high up that it almost touches the trailer roof (something we have regularly) so you physically can’t pull internals over it and throwing rathchets over would be impossible even with ladders to climb all the way up. What would DVSA want you to do there? Get the top pallets taken off so you lose half the load so you can strap it? But then price of stuff goes up because you’d need double the amount of trucks to take it.
iomex:
Oh I’m agency so it could be anything one day to the next. In that instance it was about 20x 100mm HDF boards, was too heavy to lift once they shifted so I just made sure they were undamaged and handballed them onto a forklift.
What
I just use loads of straps now, if I have 20 on board I may as well use them all.The worst one was a BMW engine shrink wrapped to a pallet. Like…how the [zb] do you secure that? If I tie it down firmly I’ll break something. First corner and it’ll shift itself loose as there’s no securing points.
That’s what I do when I can. Say I’ve got a load of timber, if I’m carrying 15 straps I’ll put them all on, the same load of timber if I’m carrying 20 straps I’ll put them all on. When it’s a load that definitely has the potential to shift and cause big problems if it does then I’ll try and strap it at least half as much again as what I think it actually needs.