Tips to make securing your truck load safe and easy

Hiring a truck is a great way to transport a large load to where you need it to be. Some loads are more stable than others. It helps to know how to secure your load safely and what the regulations are, before you begin the process of putting your load onto your truck.

The Truck Loading Code is available on the NZTA website and contains all the details that you need to safely and legally load your truck. This article is designed to help you make sure you have the right equipment on hand to properly secure your load before you set off.

Start by understanding what your truck can carry

Explore Vehicle Dimensions and Mass guidelines on NZTA

Whether you’re hiring a truck, borrowing it, or you’re lucky enough to own it: before you put your load onboard it’s a good idea to find out what you can and cannot carry. The first priority with any load is to make sure you keep within the legal weight limits and maximum dimensions for the vehicle you’re using.

Vehicle weight limits, axle load limits and maximum dimensions can all be found in NZTA Factsheet 13: Vehicle Dimensions and Mass.

Restrictions are placed on the weight and dimensions of your load to make sure that your vehicle doesn’t become overloaded and a danger to yourself or other road users. It’s important to consider how accelerating, decelerating, and manoeuvring your vehicle can impact the weight of your load. This is particularly important when considering how to secure your load within your truck.

The first priority with any load is to make sure you keep within the legal weight limits and maximum dimensions for the vehicle you’re using.

Understand how to place your load

Once you’re sure that your load is not going to exceed any weight or size requirements; it’s important to load it as safely as possible to ensure maximum stability when your truck is in motion.

As long as it does not affect your ability to manoeuvre your vehicle, your load should be placed against the cargo barrier, headboard or front rack. If not, you will need to double the strength of the lashings for the load or add baulking between the load and the cargo barrier, headboard or front rack.

The load should be evenly distributed across your truck to ensure an even spread of weight across the floor area and on your axles, and as low a centre of gravity as possible [see Figure 4: NZTA Truck Loading Code]. If you do have to stack your load, take care to place heavier items at the base of the stack, graduating to the lightest items at the top.

To maintain lateral stability, it’s important to load your vehicle along the centre line. If you’re dealing with a partial load, or multiple drop off points, follow the instructions in the Load Distribution and Arrangement on Vehicles section of the Truck Loading Code. It’s always important to follow the maximum permitted axle weights.

High loads can undermine the stability of your truck – especially when cornering. If you need to transport a high load let your truck hire company know so they can recommend a truck with a low platform. Whatever vehicle you are using to transport your load, NZTA recommends that the height of your load should not be more than either the length of your vehicle or two times the width of your load.

The load should be evenly distributed across your truck to ensure an even spread of weight across the floor area and on your axles, and as low a centre of gravity as possible.

How to secure your load

Reducing Friction

You do not want to stack your load on a slippery platform surface. Before you begin putting your load into a truck, consider the base of the load and how you can stop it moving on the platform or base of the truck.

To keep movement and therefore friction to a minimum, your aim should be to keep both the platform surface and the base of your load as clean and dry, and free from grease, as possible. Take extra care securing your load if metal-to-metal contact can’t be avoided.

Keep both the platform surface and the base of your load as clean and dry, and free from grease, as possible. Rollers are particularly at high risk given their smooth steel drum surface.

Anchorage points

You must have certified anchorage points on your vehicle to which you can fasten lashings to prevent your load shifting forwards, backwards, sideways and upwards (when going over bumps).

To calculate how many anchorage points you need you will need to apply the principles outlined in the NZTA’s Strength Requirements of Restraint Systems. “Each anchor point must have a strength at least equal to the rated strength of the lashings secured. All vehicles must comply with NZS 5444 Load anchorage points for vehicles, in accordance with the Heavy Vehicles Rule.”

Lashings (secured to anchorage points).

Lashings can be composed of rope or cordage (AS/NZS 4345), clamps, steel wire rope (AS 3569 or BS 302), chains (AS/NZS 4344 or BS 4942), or webbing or strapping (AS/NZS 4380).

In all cases lashings must comply with the relevant safety codes and be regularly inspected (especially before use) to make sure there is no damage that could impact their performance.

Your lashings need to be strong enough to prevent movement of your load. They should be properly tightened at all times – which includes the need to perform checks during the journey to ensure they are still correctly adjusted.

Lashings should be fixed in a way that keeps the load secure even if one of the lashings should loosen or fail. To ensure the effectiveness of lashings they should be checked to make sure they will not come in contact with any sharp edges on the vehicle or load.

More information on lashings, acceptable types, standards, and fixings can be found in the Load-securing equipment section of the Truck Loading Code.

Lashings must comply with the relevant safety codes and be regularly inspected (especially before use) to make sure there is no damage that could impact their performance.

Dunnage

NZTA recommends avoiding using loose dunnage wherever possible. If dunnage is required to support your load because of its shape, it should be carefully chosen to prevent movement during the journey. Timber dunnage should be of uniform thickness and as wide as possible.

Find out more here.

Baulking arrangements

Baulking arrangements include headboards, pockets and stakes, traverse beams, shoring bars, chocks and dunnage, which are securely attached to the vehicle.

“The front of the load should be abutted against the headboard, front rack, or an obstacle fitted transversely across the vehicle platform and firmly attached to the chassis frame. Blocks, wedges and chocks may be used to prevent individual items of a load from moving in any horizontal direction. Care must be taken to ensure that these are strong enough and are adequately secured to the vehicle platform.”

Tarpaulin

Tarpaulin, netting, or sheeting is used to contain loose bulk loads. These are loads which do not lend themselves to any form of packaging or containment – such as sand, shingle, rubbish, asphalt etc.

If you’re transporting a loose load that sits higher than 100mm below any side of the vehicle, or that could be displaced by air movement or wind when your vehicle is in motion, then the loose bulk load must be tarped, netted or sheeted.

Find out more details here.

Do you need a Transport Service Licence?

If you’re using a truck with a Gross Vehicle Mass (GVM) over 6000kg to move goods, you may need to hold and display a Transport Service Licence in the form of a Goods Service Licence.

You can read about Transport Service Licences and when you need them in our article Do I need a Transport Service Licence?.

Once you’re travelling

Once you’ve correctly secured your load and ensured you’re complying with all requirements for road safety, it’s important to keep your attention on your load while you’re driving.

Remember, the load on your vehicle could affect the way that your vehicle handles. It’s important to consider this and drive carefully, especially when turning or going around bends.
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Take time on your journey to check your load after you have travelled 25km and then at regular intervals after that. You should also check your load is secure if you add or remove items, after any emergency braking or any sharp or violent manoeuvres, or if you check your tyres.

Securing your load properly will help you to be safe on the road, protect the safety of other users, ensure your load arrives safe and undamaged, and stop you from being fined or penalised for failing to meet regulations

More information

It’s important to consult the NZTA’s Load Restraint Guide and any additional local or regional regulations for comprehensive information on load restraint requirements.

Below are some helpful references which should help you plan and prepare to properly secure your load.

Safe Loading of a Heavy Vehicle, NZTA
Safe transportation and loading of Construction Equipment, NZTA
Safe loading and transportation of loose bulk loads
NZTA Truck Loading Code (Website link)
NZTA Truck Loading Code (PDF)

Hiring a truck from Allways Hire

Our team has lots of experience helping customers just like you to transport loads using our equipment. If you’re transporting another piece of our equipment we can help you secure it safely before you leave.

If you’re hiring a truck to transport your load, we’ll be happy to show you all the anchorage points so you have the information you need to safely secure your load. Don’t forget to check out our product information pages before you arrive – or ask a member of our team – to find out if you need to hold a Transport Service Licence.