There are semitrailer operations on the road where the trailer is permanently coupled to the
truck tractor. This means trailer coupling components are not subject to inspection, cleaning
and lubrication and measured for wear tolerances. A tolerance of only 1mm is covered in
Govt Gazette No.32918 dated 5 February 2010.
If a truck trailer is matched together they should be decoupled monthly and the kingpin,
skid plate and 5 th wheel cleaned, inspected and lubricated again to ensure maximum life and
safety. The use of Teflon plates does not make the combination maintenance free as the
kingpin, skid plate and 5th wheel linkages still need to be inspected.
A culture exists of servicing the truck tractor and leaving the trailer for a future date – a
driver, when questioned about the poor condition of the trailer he was hauling, commented
that ‘They only fix it when it breaks’.
