RV awnings may be dangerous - interactive RVing article

RV awnings may be dangerous
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RV AWNINGS MAY BE DANGEROUS
"There are two types of RVers --- those that have had their awnings blown off and those that will!"

The following is from an article by injuryboard.com. What's your experience? - have you ever had a problem with an awning? Add your comments at the end.

"The public should be aware of the dangers involving awnings attached to the side of recreational vehicles (RVs) and horse trailers.

The hazard is that awnings which have been rolled up and fastened to the side of the vehicle may become dislodged and hang out towards oncoming traffic.

This hazard is so common that one RV manufacturer stated on its website: "There are two types of RVers --- those that have had their awnings blown off and those that will!"

A defective awning lock resulted in the death of Terry Bassett, a Uniontown, Alabama city councilman who was returning to his home from a school board meeting. As Bassett's minivan approached an oncoming extended horse trailer being pulled by a 2001 Ford F350 truck, the awning on the horse trailer had broken loose from the trailer and was hanging down towards oncoming traffic. When the two vehicles met, the awning assembly from the trailer struck Mr. Bassett's windshield, killing him instantly.

This accident was preventable.

Mr. Bassett's family hired the law firm headed by former Lt. Governor Jere Beasley to sue the manufacturer which caused Bassett's death. Mike Andrews, who handled the case for the Beasley firm, discovered that the retractable arms of the awning were equipped with metal folding locks that were defectively designed and manufactured. The locks were insufficient to withstand the wind which occurs while a vehicle is driving down the highway. Mr. Andrews found a number of alternative designs which are sold to prevent such lock failures. Some of these were available for purchase on EBay."

"There are two types of RVers --- those that have had their awnings blown off and those that will!"
What do you think? ...

Readers' comments:
(Latest first)

Chuck : As the old saying goes, "Been there..........done that"! It is amazing to me just how "Know it all", some RVers are when you attempt to share an experience about the awning billowing off and becoming a wind sail. It happened to me. NO, it is NOT going to be fixed by a few keep ties tied around the support poles. The tube MUST be restrained to solve the problem. There are some decent fixes on the NET at a reasonable cost. Don't become complacent and continue to drive where there is a possibility of moderate to high winds. People have lost their life because of this problem. Even $300,000 rigs have the problem.

frank : Lost our's in Arizona. Went over top of trailer and broke window on drivers. No other vechicles involved.

Frank : We had our awning arm come lose on Hwy10 near the Palm Springs area. Since then I have tied straps on the awning arms.Hope that helps the next time we are driving in high winds

Terry Regennitter : Lost an awning off a Southwind from a strait line wind in N.C. Had one unroll while traveling in Iowa. Never use the one on the Holiday Rambler.

Trev : I had my awning out last summer in Washington state, the weather was warm and there was very little breeze. I drove to town about 15 minutes away and noticed it was breezy in town. I hurried back but to my amazement the awning had blown over the trailer even tho I had it weighted down with cement blocks. Bad choice, one ended up on my roof poking a nice hole in it and the other came thru my door window. Thank God no one was hurt and it was still calm and sunny when I got back with no wind. What a freak that was.

westernwill : I had my awning blown off in a park in 2001. Never used an awning since.

Jim Coniston : Happened to me in a park last month. We weren't traveling though and it wasn't windy. All of a sudden a freak gust picks up the awning and destroys it. Now I feel I need a secondary lock when I'm moving and never put it down when I'm standing. What's the point?

Lowelife : I had my awning blow off as I reached an open area in a hilly area. The wind gust was probably 60 mph. The awning unfurled and smashed on top of the roof. I pulled over and used a knife to cut it off. It would not fit in the rv so I left it on the side of the road. Secondary locks should be used on all coaches.

Denny : I bought a new Four Winds Dutchmen on a Kodiak Chassis a few months ago in Denver, CO, after driving about 200 miles, a slide out awning became lose and one end began banging against the side of the RV...Later, I discovered that during installation, the worker failed to remove a cotter pin from the spindle end which held an arm support in place during shipping. When the awning was opened, the cotter pin broke the arm support rod, and came apart. Had I been passing another vehicle at the time, an injury/death could have occurred.

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