Photo: Bahnfrend, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Whether you can tow a trailer or caravan on L or P plates depends entirely on your state. Victorian learners and P1 drivers cannot tow at all. NSW P1 drivers can tow only a light trailer. In South Australia, WA and the NT, learners and P platers can tow. This checklist compares the rules, then covers the towing rules that apply to everyone.
Towing rules for L and P plates by state
| State or territory | Learner | P1 (red P) | P2 (green P) |
|---|---|---|---|
| NSW | No towing | Trailers whose own unladen mass is 250 kg or less. Red P plate on the back of the trailer | Full licence towing rules. Green P plate on the back of the trailer |
| Victoria | No towing | No towing a caravan or trailer, unless for work or under instruction | No towing ban in the P2 conditions |
| Queensland | Check with TMR | Check with TMR | Check with TMR |
| WA | May tow within learner permit conditions, with a supervisor | Can tow. Put a P plate on the back of the trailer or caravan | Can tow |
| SA | Not restricted from towing (car learners). Motorbike learners must not tow | Not restricted from towing | Not restricted from towing |
| Tasmania | Learners must not tow another vehicle or a trailer | Can tow | Can tow. Fit a P plate to the trailer if it hides your rear plate |
| ACT | Trailers up to 750 kg GVM only | Trailers up to 750 kg GVM until you have held a provisional licence for 12 months | Same 750 kg limit if within your first 12 months on Ps |
| NT | Allowed on a class C learner licence. L plate on the back of the trailer | Allowed. P plate on the back of the trailer | Allowed. P plate on the back of the trailer |
Rules change, and some of these come from web pages rather than handbooks. Check the current rule with your transport department before you hitch up. Moving interstate? Your home-state conditions can follow you. See driving interstate on L or P plates.
Checklist before you tow
- Is your car allowed to tow? Check the vehicle handbook or manufacturer. If they recommend against towing, you must not tow, even with a tow bar fitted (SA).
- Is it within the limits? The loaded trailer must not exceed the lesser of the tow bar’s rated capacity and the vehicle manufacturer’s maximum (WA, SA).
- No rating given? In SA, the trailer’s loaded mass must not exceed your car’s unloaded mass. The ACT handbook says up to 1.5 times the towing vehicle’s unladen weight, unless the manufacturer sets a lower limit.
- Coupling and safety chain fitted and adjusted (TAS, ACT). WA requires one safety chain up to 2.5 tonnes and two cross-hitched chains from 2.5 to 4.5 tonnes.
- Trailer brakes: required on trailers over 750 kg gross trailer mass (SA, WA). WA requires a breakaway system over 2 tonnes.
- Lights: indicators, tail and brake lights, rear reflectors and a number plate light all working (TAS, WA).
- Load: evenly spread and secured. NSW says cover it and make sure it does not overhang.
- Plates: L or P plate on the back of the trailer where your state requires it.
- Mirrors: fit extra mirrors if the trailer is wider than your car (SA, WA).
Rules that apply to every driver
- Tow only one trailer or caravan at a time (NSW, TAS).
- No one may ride in a trailer or caravan being towed (NSW, TAS, SA, WA).
- In Tasmania, a caravan or trailer and its load must not be more than 2.5 metres wide or 4.3 metres high, and the whole combination no more than 19 metres long.
- In WA, the maximum speed when towing a caravan or trailer is 100 km/h, the same cap that applies to learners.
- Towing illegally brings a fine and demerit points (NSW).
Towing a caravan on the highway
A car and caravan 7.5 metres or longer counts as a long vehicle, so long vehicle rules apply to you.
- NT: leave at least 200 metres behind another vehicle over 7.5 metres, so road trains and others can overtake. On roads without street lights, stay at least 60 metres behind heavy vehicles or other vehicles towing caravans, unless overtaking.
- Pull over regularly to let following traffic pass (NT).
- Slow down well before corners, avoid hard braking in corners, and take care going downhill or overtaking, because braking is reduced (ACT).
- Check headlight alignment when loaded or towing, so you do not dazzle oncoming drivers (NT).
More: sharing the road with trucks and road trains and outback and remote driving.
Towing another car with a rope or bar
| Rule | State |
|---|---|
| A licensed driver must sit in the towed car, controlling brakes and steering | TAS, WA, ACT |
| Gap between the cars: no more than 4 metres | TAS, WA |
| Gap between the cars: no more than 3.5 metres | ACT |
| Towing a motorcycle: no more than 2.5 metres | TAS, WA |
| Flag on the rope if it is longer than 2 metres | TAS (at least 30 cm square), WA |
| White flag on the tow rope, lit at night | ACT |
| At night, the towed car’s tail lights must be visible | TAS, WA |
Victorian learners must not tow another vehicle. Tasmanian learners must not either. NSW learners must not tow or drive a vehicle being towed.
Common questions
Can I tow a box trailer on my red Ps in NSW?
Only if the trailer itself weighs 250 kg or less unladen, and you put a red P plate on the back of it.
Can I tow a caravan on my P plates in Victoria?
Not on P1, unless it is for work or under instruction. The P2 conditions in the handbook do not include a towing ban.
Can learners tow a trailer in South Australia?
Yes. SA does not restrict car learners or P platers from towing, but motorbike learners cannot tow.
What is the ACT trailer limit for P platers?
750 kg GVM until you have held a provisional licence for at least 12 months. Learners have the same 750 kg limit.
Do I need an L or P plate on the trailer?
Yes in NSW and the NT. WA advises it. In Tasmania you need one if the trailer hides your car’s rear plate. The aim is that drivers behind can always see it.
Related: the Australian Road Rules explained, learner licence rules compared and P plate rules compared.
Sources
- Transport for NSW, “Road User Handbook” (nsw.gov.au) and “Towing a trailer or caravan” (nsw.gov.au)
- Department of Transport and Planning Victoria, “Road to Solo Driving” (transport.vic.gov.au)
- Queensland Government, “Towing vehicles and trailers” (qld.gov.au)
- Department of Transport and Major Infrastructure WA, “Drive Safe: A handbook for Western Australian road users” (transport.wa.gov.au)
- Road Safety Commission WA, “Novice drivers” (wa.gov.au) and Wheelmates, “P plates” (wheelmates.wa.gov.au)
- Government of South Australia, “The Driver’s Handbook”, February 2026, and “Frequently asked questions” (mylicence.sa.gov.au)
- Department of State Growth Tasmania, “Tasmanian Road Rules, Version 2.1” (transport.tas.gov.au) and “P1 restrictions” and “P2 restrictions” (platesplus.tas.gov.au)
- Access Canberra, “ACT Road Rules Handbook” (accesscanberra.act.gov.au)
- Transport Canberra and City Services, “Learner and provisional driver safety” (cityservices.act.gov.au)
- Northern Territory Government, “NT Road Users’ Handbook” (nt.gov.au)