Is your cycle carrier an accident waiting to happen?
It may sound a little overly dramatic, but in fact this does happen with alarming regularity… A quick search online will show you a number of people with stories of how their cycle carrier has failed and shed bikes all over the road.
So, the question is… Is YOUR carrier an accident waiting to happen?
In our previous article, we discussed what the legal requirements are for rear mounted car cycle racks are, you can view it here: https://auxtail.com/2018/06/09/what-are-the-regulations-regarding-cycle-racks/ The long and short of it is that in the UK there are NO official recognised test standards for rear mounted cycle carriers there is no approvals needed. Yes, this really is as crazy as it sounds!
Who’s responsible if your bike comes falling off of your car at 70mph? Well, that’s actually down to you unless you can PROVE that the cycle carrier you purchased was actually faulty… However all instruction manuals will specifically state that you need to check the carrier is fit for purpose every single time. Can you PROVE you carried out those checks? No? Then responsibility will fall firmly back on your shoulders.
Here at Auxtail we have worked hard to ensure that our carriers are as safe as can be. While we don’t HAVE to complete any testing to sell our carriers, we have undertaken a raft of tests to ensure that the carriers are safe for UK roads, including: The Elk Slalom, Belgium Pave and Hard Braking tests. We also use our own products, racking up many thousands of miles while transporting our bikes around the country.
As far as we can tell we are also the only company that have a built in ‘secondary’ security feature; a secure cable which attaches both the carrier and the bike directly to the tow ball.
It’s this attention to detail and these features that make the Auxtail one of the best and safest carriers you can buy today.
Still don’t believe us? Here’s an article written by Steve Richardson, who became dedicated to cycle carrier safety, after his carrier fell off of his car, while travelling at speed:
https://bikefat.com/7-deadly-sins-of-bike-racks-and-how-the-best-racks-avoid-them/
STILL need more evidence? Here are some car cycle racks failing on film!
