I can't put the stabiliser lever down with mine fitted so it lives in the boot while travelling .......... and gets fitted if I stop for a break where I need to leave the van unattended
Sat by the window in the cafe last time so I could see the van while eating.

It doesn't take two minutes to put it on if you are stopping at motorway services etc ! Then remove it before you move off....simples :)

I read somewhere yesterday that the hitch lock would make it more difficult to release the van if it caught fire.Rare I know, but.....

Can anyone confirm it's illegal to tow while the lock is engaged as the two little hitlers told me.

I am not a lawyer but I do not believe it to be illegal. Obviously, depending on who you listen to it may or may not be recommended but that is a far cry from legality.

Stewart

If there was a question of legality I would have hoped that the reply to the letter in Motorhome and Caravan Club Magazine, referred to above, would have mentioned it. I'm guessing they're pretty clued up on the law and towing???

As to the fire / unhitch business, that seems a bit of a red herring. OK, if the back end was on fire then you may want to wind the jockey wheel down, find the key for the hitch lock, shuffle the car to take the strain off the connection, haul up the stabiliser, fiddle with the lock, get the hitch lock off, disconnect breakaway and electrics and unhitch - all while hoping the fire is not coming your way and the 2 6kg cylinders of Propane are not about to blow you to medium-rare pieces...............but would you? I've no idea how an Eriba fairs in fire conditions, probably better than the standard yogurt pots, but even so,,,,hmmm, would you risk it?

I suspect that the insurers who insist on this have no idea what a hitch lock does - it just sounds like a 'GOOD THING' and so they add it to the list. Personally I have no idea if the hitch lock makes any difference in the event of an accident, but if it prevents easy separation either during or after a shunt it seems a bit daft. The other question that come to mind is whether all hitch locks allow the stabiliser lever to engage fully? No idea but some of them do look awfully bulky.