N Y new hitch law?

40dog · #1 (**permalink**) 09-10-2009, 06:42 PM

I recentlt have heard of a new law in ny . If you have a reciever hitch and travel with the ball / pintle or any hitch in the reciever when not towing a trailer you can be issued a ticket for 35 dollars or more. what next !!

monckywrench · #2 (**permalink**) 09-10-2009, 07:00 PM

Got any proof that law exists?

bpounds · #3 (**permalink**) 09-10-2009, 07:24 PM

The NY chapter is fairly active here. Maybe ask this question down there, or at least point them to this thread. Someone may have heard of it.

On the surface, it sounds like something certain states would do. They can be dangerous.

http://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/forum87/

crown180 · #4 (**permalink**) 09-10-2009, 07:53 PM

Personally I always wondered why someone would leave them in. You see nice trucks with the balls on back all rusted = just looks wrong.

truckpoor · #5 (**permalink**) 09-10-2009, 08:41 PM

Tailgater deterent?

jake00 · #6 (**permalink**) 09-10-2009, 11:07 PM

I've heard of a law like that in IL(never seen it) and my ball has saved my bumper a time or 3. I'll take my chances

bpounds · #7 (**permalink**) 09-10-2009, 11:12 PM

I don't leave mine in. Not because I care about the other guys shins, and not because it might be illegal.

1. They rattle.
2. The pin hole wears out from the rattle.
3. I lost mine on a gravel road in the middle of the WY prairie, and it was only blind luck that we returned the same road and found it. Never found the pin. Never knew it was even missing until we drove back the way we had come, and - "hey look, somebody left a hitch in the road, man that looks just like mine, dang that IS mine!" Had to drive 120 miles round trip to get a new pin.
4. My own shins.

grafekie · #8 (**permalink**) 09-11-2009, 06:45 AM

I know several states have this law... never heard it being enforced except once in NH. I have only hit my shin once in all the time I've had a truck *knock on wood*. My hitches never have really rattled... and I usually use a lock rather than a straight pin, so I don't generally worry about it. My pintle lives in the reciever unless I'm towing a smaller trailer

monckywrench · #9 (**permalink**) 09-11-2009, 06:27 PM

I bolt mine in using locknuts. The bolts don't rattle.
The hitch makes a nice bumper protector, and since it's on a truck I don't care about it looking like it works for a living. There is no functional reason that leaving them in should be outlawed.

sacu · #10 (**permalink**) 09-11-2009, 06:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jake00

I've heard of a law like that in IL(never seen it) and my ball has saved my bumper a time or 3. I'll take my chances

My ball has saved 2 bumpers to boot.

3800rs · #11 (**permalink**) 09-11-2009, 08:30 PM

ny has some crazy laws. I have not heard of this one yet though

kelly67 · #12 (**permalink**) 09-11-2009, 08:40 PM

When I go camping I like to lock my hitch in my front receiver to put my camper in tight spots. So I wonder if thats illegal? I did have a lady fall straight to the ground from my 6" drop hitch. i dropped off trailer and was going to take it out when I got home. She wasnt hurt but did start taking it out after that.

Surge08 · #13 (**permalink**) 09-11-2009, 09:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bpounds

I don't leave mine in. Not because I care about the other guys shins, and not because it might be illegal.

1. They rattle.
2. The pin hole wears out from the rattle.
3. I lost mine on a gravel road in the middle of the WY prairie, and it was only blind luck that we returned the same road and found it. Never found the pin. Never knew it was even missing until we drove back the way we had come, and - "hey look, somebody left a hitch in the road, man that looks just like mine, dang that IS mine!" Had to drive 120 miles round trip to get a new pin.
4. My own shins.

I would have to agree with Bill here, He has a point

grafekie · #14 (**permalink**) 09-12-2009, 06:45 AM

There is a functional reason to outlaw them... they are dangerous and prevent the bumpers from functioning. Yes, it protects yours, but at the cost of whomever is hit by it. It can turn a no-damage accident into a very pricy one.

monckywrench · #15 (**permalink**) 09-12-2009, 10:36 AM

"they are dangerous"

To whom , and supply proof for that assertion!

"and prevent the bumpers from functioning"

That isn't a reason to outlaw them, that's a reason for the person who is liable for the accident to pay for the property damage. Stock bumpers no longer "bump", and are mere cosmetic covers. They are ultra-light to save material and production cost. They are ruined at very minor levels of impact. I prefer not to have mine ruined. I have done plenty of crash repair over the years, and can state based on dissection of many vehicles (both wreck and donor) that the idea of a stock bumper that reduces crash damage is currently a joke.

Reese hitches aren't "dangerous" because they don't negate the crush zone of the vehicle that hits them (losing a bumper cover and maybe a core brace is merely material) and why pray tell should I give a rodents posterior about vehicle damage of someone who chooses to run into me? A hitch only sticks out a few inches.

I have the right to run custom bumpers (8" I-beam with a section of railroad rail lengthwise on my Chevy crew cab!) made of heavy steel, and they protect my ride but don't cushion anyone else. That's their lookout. If I do damage, I'm liable. If I block their attempt to ram me and they choose to smash their ride, so what?

If such an absurd law passes where I live , bolted-on non-Reese-style hitches will still be legal (because otherwise hitches would be outlawed altogether!). My Reese sockets will go away (they make nice vise mounts for welding and workbenches) and be replaced with appropriate bumpers using bolted mount flanges.