Every year, there are a lot of wrecks involving trailers. For the people that don’t properly hook up their trailers when they are driving, they can potentially be putting a lot of people in danger. For example, if a person only locks the trailer on the ball, the trailer can come unlocked and bounce off the ball of the truck. However, if a person locks the trailer on the ball and hooks the safety chains, then the trailer has double hook up to the truck. Also, not everyone checks all of the brake lights, turning signals, or running lights on the trailer. If the turning signals are not working properly, then someone else may not see that the trailer is going to turn. If the brake lights aren’t working properly, then someone else may not see that the trailer is trying to stop or slow down. 

So for the people that don’t know how to properly hook up their goose-neck trailer, here are the steps.

1. Make sure the trailer is jacked up high enough that it won’t hit the tailgate or the end of the bed.
2. Back the truck up far enough that the ball is directly underneath the coupler.
3. Jack the trailer as far down as it will go.
4. Lock the trailer onto the ball in the truck.
5. Hook up the safety chains.
6. Plug the lights in.
7. If the truck has a tailgate put it up.
8. Pull the safety pins and make sure the jack(s) are up.
9. Check to make sure that all of the lights are working properly