For the first time in its 55-year history, this trusted name in the road freight industry is fronting court over an alleged over-height breach.

Family owned and operated, Clayton’s Towing is one of Queensland’s largest tow operators, with a fleet of around 150 tow trucks and 16 locations across the state.

Bill and Mary Clayton started the business from scratch in 1970 after they hand-built their first tow truck. Their son Mike Clayton joined the family business in the 1990s and serves as CEO.

In all its years of operation, this is the first time Clayton’s has been accused of breaching the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL).

On February 27, 2025, one of its drivers was tasked with picking up a Kenworth rigid from Bundaberg, to be transported to Brisbane.

The vehicle was intercepted by National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR) Safety and Compliance Officers (SCOs) on the Bruce Highway, Maryborough. They performed an inspection and found that the heavy vehicle had a permitted height of 4.3m, however with the height of the Kenworth being towed behind it, it sat at 4.88 metres – just 58cm higher.

As no exemptions had been applied to that tow truck, the maximum penalty applied was an eye-watering $66,550, as the breach was deemed to be “severe risk”.

Clayton’s contested the breach and fronted court earlier last month.

As Mike explained, “We picked up a Kenworth rigid and the truck itself was 4.4 metres high. What the NHVR is saying is that we can’t go above 4.3 metres. However within our permit guidelines, we can go to 5 metres high if we load a vehicle onto one of our super tilt trailers – and that’s legal.

“If you’ve already got a tall truck to tow, you can’t put that onto a trailer because it will be way too high. So the only way to tow it would be to put it behind a tow truck. The purpose of a tow truck is to tow a vehicle.

“The concern with the 4.3 metre height is that a lot of trucks on the road are already at that height, so when you hook them up to a tow truck, of course you’re going to be over-height.

“Since this incident, I’ve had calls from multiple heavy vehicle towing companies and we’re all doing the same thing. There’s nothing to say you can go above 4.3 metres, but there’s also nothing to say that you can’t.”

In court, Mike says it was suggested that a pilot vehicle be used for cases like this where the towed vehicle brings the combination above the prescribed height.

However Mike explained that this wouldn’t be feasible. “Sometimes it’s hard enough to get a tow truck somewhere with the hours and distance that can be required. To add a pilot vehicle into that equation just makes it that much harder.

“If a pilot vehicle was required for safety reasons, that’s one thing. But if we were using a super tilt, then we could go up to 5 metres. There’s nothing to gain for the motoring public or the towing operators through the use of a pilot vehicle. Surely they’ll come to their senses.

“They’re calling this a ‘severe risk’ breach – but it’s a severe risk to what exactly? If you can have a Class 4 super tilt operating at 5 metres high with no severe risk, or a livestock truck at 4.6 metres high, how can it be a severe risk to tow a vehicle above 4.3 metres.

“It’s very confusing and to my knowledge, I don’t think any towing company in Australia has been booked for this before. I’ve spoken to multiple large towing companies in Queensland and none of them have ever heard of this happening. It’s well known that to tow a vehicle, the truck being towed will be lifted higher. It’s the purpose of a tow truck.

“It’s certainly stirred the pot and if they stick to this it’ll be a huge cost to towing operators to have a truck towed.

“Once this sets a precedent, if you need to start having a truck towed with an escort, there’s a flow-on effect.”

While Mike says he fully understands the need for height and dimension restrictions under the law, it’s a different situation for towing operators.

“It’s not like we’re trying to go higher so we can cart more goods.”

Mike continued, “We’re just towing the vehicle behind us. We’re not going to stack another truck on top of it – and that to me is the difference. No one is trying to get an advantage out of going above these heights. We’re just trying to tow a vehicle and if that’s the height of it, we can’t change that. It’s not causing any risk to anybody.”

Big Rigs contacted the NHVR for comment on the matter.

“Heavy vehicles, including their components and load, must comply with dimension (including height) requirements. This obligation requires vehicles being towed to also comply with dimension requirements,” an NHVR spokesperson said.

“Dimension limits are in place to protect all road users and the road network, and operators and drivers have a responsibility to ensure their vehicles meet these requirements.

“Drivers should always ensure they have correctly configured or attached a towed vehicle before they start their journey.”

The NHVR added that if an over-height vehicle cannot be towed while maintaining dimension requirements, they may need to apply for an Oversize Overmass Permit.

However as Mike explained, “Clayton’s had a Tow Truck Mass or Dimension Exemption Permit in place for the tow truck, which covers increased weights and lengths, but does not mention heights of the load we can tow. We took the intent that we were governed by the height of the vehicle we were towing, and obviously it was going to be higher than its normal height when being towed.”

Big Rigs also asked the regulator why this instance has been deemed to be a severe breach.

“While NHVR Safety and Compliance Officers prioritise an inform and educate approach to encourage voluntary compliance within the industry, where there is a significant risk that jeopardises the safety of not only the driver, but other road users, the NHVR enforces the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL). Under the HVNL, corporations found guilty of offences face a maximum penalty of five times the maximum for an individual.”

The case has been adjourned, with Clayton’s Towing due to reappear in court on September 29.