A-Frames and Flat Towing: What's Actually Legal in the UK
Every pub has someone who will tell you it's fine to tow a mate's car home on a rope. Some of what they'll tell you is true. The parts that aren't are the parts that end in points on your licence — or a car with no brakes rolling into the back of yours.
Do this now
- You may not tow a broken-down vehicle on a rope or A-frame on a motorway. That exemption belongs to recovery operators only.
- The towed car needs a driver at the wheel with a licence for that vehicle, plus its own tax, MOT and insurance.
- If any of that is missing — or the car has no brakes, no steering or is stuck in gear — call for recovery instead: +44 7598 410801.
On this page
- Rope and rigid-bar towing: the rules
- Why rope towing goes wrong
- A-frames: the grey area explained
- The 750kg braking rule
- Automatics, 4WD and electric cars
- Motorways and the recovery exemption
- What you actually risk
- The alternative, and what it costs
Rope and rigid-bar towing: the rules
Towing another vehicle on a rope or rigid bar is not illegal in itself, but the conditions are strict and cumulative — you need all of them, not most of them.
- Maximum separation of 4.5 metres between the two vehicles.
- If the gap exceeds 1.5 metres, the rope or bar must carry a clearly visible marker — traditionally a coloured cloth or a marker board — so other road users can see it.
- The towed vehicle must display an ON TOW sign at the rear.
- Both vehicles need valid tax, MOT and insurance. The towed one is still on a public road and the exemptions do not apply just because it is not under its own power.
- The towed vehicle must have a driver in the seat, holding a full licence for that category of vehicle. A provisional licence holder cannot steer a towed car.
- Lights, indicators and brake lights on the towed vehicle must work if the conditions require them. In darkness or poor visibility this is not optional.
- The combined weight must be within your towing vehicle's plated limits and your licence entitlement.
Weight limits
Since December 2021, drivers holding a category B licence in Great Britain can tow trailers up to 3,500kg maximum authorised mass without taking a separate test. The limits on your own vehicle's plate still apply, and those are usually the binding constraint.
Why rope towing goes wrong
The legal box can be ticked and it can still be a bad idea. In a modern car with the engine off:
- The brake servo stops working after one or two pedal presses. The pedal goes rock hard and the stopping distance multiplies. This is the one that causes accidents.
- Power steering is gone. Electric or hydraulic, either way the wheel becomes extremely heavy, and at low speed on a tight turn it takes real strength.
- The steering lock may engage if the ignition is not in the correct position — with immediate and obvious consequences.
- Slack in the rope is the constant enemy. Every time the tow car accelerates, the rope snatches. Ropes break, tow eyes tear out, and bumpers come off.
- Nobody can communicate. Two drivers, no signals agreed, one of whom is steering a car with no brakes.
Rope towing is a technique for getting a car out of a field or across a yard. On a public road, with roundabouts, junctions and traffic, it asks a great deal of two drivers who have usually never done it before.
A-frames: the grey area explained
An A-frame is a triangular bracket that bolts to the front of a car and connects to a towbar, so the car is towed on its own four wheels behind a motorhome or larger vehicle. They are common on the motorhome scene and sold openly in the UK.
The legal position is genuinely contested. In summary:
- Sellers and user groups argue an A-frame car is a broken-down vehicle being towed, or a vehicle in its own right, and is therefore not subject to trailer regulations.
- The Department for Transport and DVSA position has generally been that once a car is coupled to an A-frame it forms a trailer combination, and must comply with trailer construction and use requirements — the most significant of which is braking.
Nobody reading this article will settle that argument. What matters practically is that enforcement is based on the trailer interpretation, so if you are stopped, that is the standard you will be measured against.
Abroad
A-frame use is treated very differently across Europe. Several countries, including Spain and Germany, do not accept the practice and have penalised UK motorhome owners for it. Do not assume a UK-legal setup travels.
The 750kg braking rule
This is the crux of the A-frame question. Under construction and use regulations, a trailer with a maximum weight over 750kg must have a braking system that operates on its wheels — and that braking must be functional, not theoretical.
Almost every car on UK roads weighs more than 750kg. A small city car might be 900kg; anything family-sized is well over a tonne. So an A-frame combination essentially always falls into the braked category.
That is why reputable A-frame kits include a braking system — typically a cable or electronic mechanism that applies the towed car's own brakes in proportion to the towing vehicle's deceleration. A bare bracket with no braking provision, on a car of ordinary weight, does not meet the standard on the interpretation enforcement bodies use.
Other requirements that come with the trailer interpretation:
- Working lights and indicators on the towed vehicle, wired to the towing vehicle — usually a lighting board or a bypass relay.
- A breakaway cable or secondary coupling.
- Compliance with overall combination length and width limits.
- Observance of lower speed limits that apply to vehicles towing: 50mph on single carriageways and 60mph on dual carriageways and motorways.
- No use of the outside lane of a motorway with three or more lanes while towing.
Automatics, 4WD and electric cars
Legality aside, some cars must not be towed on their wheels at all — this is a mechanical constraint, not a legal one.
- Automatic gearboxes. Many autos rely on the engine driving an oil pump to lubricate the transmission. Engine off, wheels turning, no lubrication — and the box cooks itself. Some manufacturers permit a short tow at low speed; many prohibit it outright. Check the handbook, not the internet.
- Four-wheel drive. With all four wheels driven, there is no axle you can safely leave on the ground. Most 4WD and AWD cars must be transported on a flatbed.
- Electric and hybrid vehicles. The motor is permanently connected to the driven wheels, so towing spins it and generates current with nowhere to go. Manufacturers prohibit it. Full detail in our guide to why an EV has to go on a flatbed.
Motorways and the recovery exemption
You cannot tow a broken-down vehicle on a rope or A-frame along a motorway. That is not a technicality — it is the rule, and there is no version of it that permits "just to the next junction".
Professional recovery operators work to a different set of provisions. A suspended tow, where the vehicle's wheels are lifted clear on a specialist spec-lift or the whole car is carried on a flatbed, is what makes motorway recovery lawful and safe. That equipment, and the operator training that goes with it, is the difference.
If you have broken down on the M27, the M3 or the A34, the answer is always the same: get to the hard shoulder or an emergency area, get out on the passenger side, get behind the barrier, and call. Our motorway breakdown guide has the full sequence.
What you actually risk
- Insufficient brakes or unsafe combination: prosecution for using a vehicle in a dangerous condition — a fine of up to £2,500, three penalty points and a discretionary ban.
- No insurance on the towed vehicle: six to eight points, an unlimited fine and seizure.
- No MOT on the towed vehicle: a fine of up to £1,000.
- An accident. The real risk. If a towed car with inadequate brakes runs into someone, you are the one explaining the arrangement to an investigator — and to your insurer, who may well decline the claim.
The alternative, and what it costs
A flatbed removes all of it. No braking question, no licence question, no ON TOW sign, no motorway prohibition, no risk to the gearbox, and no second driver needed. And local recovery is cheaper than most people assume:
| Job | Indicative cost |
|---|---|
| Local recovery, under 10 miles | £80 – £150 |
| Up to 50 miles | £120 – £250 |
| Non-runner, needs winching or skates | add £20 – £60 |
| Fine and points for a dangerous towed combination | up to £2,500 + 3 points |
Set the bottom row against the top three and the arithmetic makes itself.
Thinking of towing it yourself?
A flatbed removes every one of the legal and mechanical problems on this page, and usually costs less than a set of penalty points. We cover Southampton, Winchester, Portsmouth and Hampshire, 24 hours a day.
? Call +44 7598 410801Request a callback
Frequently asked questions
Is it legal to tow a car on a rope in the UK?
Are A-frames legal in the UK?
Can I tow a broken-down car on the motorway?
Can you tow an automatic car?
Does the towed car need its own insurance and MOT?