17 August 2026
Can My Car Have a Towbar Fitted, Is It Approved to Tow, and How Much Can It Tow?
These three questions come up together more often than not, and it's worth untangling them, because they're not quite the same thing. Most cars can physically have a towbar bolted on. Whether it's legally approved to tow, and how much, is a separate question entirely — this is determined by what it says on the VIN plate.
Can my car have a towbar fitted?
In terms of the physical fitting, yes, in nearly all cases a towbar can be attached to the vehicle's chassis. But fitting one isn't the same as being allowed to use it. A towbar should only be fitted — and only used — if your car has an official, manufacturer-approved towing capacity. If it doesn't, fitting a towbar anyway is illegal under UK Construction and Use regulations and will invalidate your insurance, whatever the physical fitting looks like.
So the real first question isn't "can a towbar go on," it's "is my car rated to tow" — which brings us to the next point.
Is my car approved to tow?
Every vehicle's towing capacity, if it has one, is set by the manufacturer during the type approval process — the certification a car goes through before it's allowed on UK roads. This figure isn't something a fitter can add, adjust, or unlock later. If your car was never submitted for approval with a towing rating, it doesn't have one, full stop.
The good news is this information is easy to check yourself before you book anything:
The VIN or chassis plate, usually found under the bonnet or inside the driver's door frame, lists two key figures. The first line is the vehicle's Maximum Authorised Mass (its own weight, loaded). The second is the Gross Train Weight — the combined weight of the car and a braked trailer together. If a Gross Train Weight is listed and it's higher than the Maximum Authorised Mass, your car is approved to tow.
If there's no Gross Train Weight listed, or it matches the Maximum Authorised Mass exactly, that's a strong sign the vehicle isn't approved to tow at all.
How much can my car tow?
Assuming your car is rated to tow, the amount depends on whether the trailer or caravan has its own brakes.
For a braked trailer, the maximum is your car's Gross Train Weight minus its own Maximum Authorised Mass — that's your true towing capacity for anything with brakes fitted. For an unbraked trailer, the legal maximum in the UK is 750kg regardless of what your car could otherwise handle, since anything heavier than that must have brakes by law.
There's also a hard ceiling to be aware of: 3,500kg is the maximum any car-and-trailer combination can weigh in the UK, and your driving licence matters here too. If you passed your test after 1 January 1997, you're generally entitled to tow up to that 3,500kg combined weight, but it's worth checking the categories on the back of your licence to confirm, particularly for heavier combinations.
Putting it together
Before booking a towbar fitting, it's worth checking your car's plate or handbook first. If there's a Gross Train Weight listed, you're approved to tow, and the difference between that figure and your car's own weight tells you your towing capacity. From there, a type-approved towbar matched to that rating — fitted properly — is all that's needed to tow legally and safely.
Not sure how to read your car's figures, or want to double-check before committing? Get in touch with the Towbar Express team and we'll help you work out exactly what your car can tow. Alternatively, click here for more VIN plate information.
