Buying a used plant trailer: ramp, deck and chassis

What this page says about how a plant trailer is built comes from the pages of three makers, Indespension, Woodford and Towmate, as they stood on 10 October 2026. Each statement is that maker's description of its own product, not a test of it. The pages are listed at the foot. The checks are this site's suggestions and follow from what the makers describe. This is general information. The rules on what you may tow are outside this guide, so check official guidance before you buy.

A plant trailer carries a machine that is driven on up a ramp. Where it sits among the other kinds of trailer is covered in types of trailer. A trailer whose bed tips to unload is a different thing, covered in buying a used tipper trailer.

The ramp or tailgate

The machine goes on over the back, and the makers close the back in different ways. Woodford lists its plant trailer with "push in / out ramps" or a "Split tailgate" (Woodford: Plant Trailer). Indespension fits one of its ranges with a "spring-assisted loading ramp" and another with "Swaged Steel Ramps", which it says give "greater grip and durability" (Indespension: Plant Trailers).

At a viewing:

• lower the ramp or tailgate and raise it again yourself, so you know whether you can lift it and whether any springs still help
• look at the hinges and the catches that hold it shut
• look at the surface a machine's tracks climb, for bent bars and worn grip
• with push-in ramps, pull both out and check that neither is missing

The deck

Towmate builds a second trailer with a deck that slopes down at the back, and says of it: "The beaver tailed deck reduces the loading angle and makes loading machines with a low ground clearance a lot easier" (Towmate: Rhino Beavertail Plant Trailer). Indespension lists a Beavertail range of its own.

What the deck is made of differs as well. Indespension describes one range as "Galvanised chequer plate steel construction" and its AluMAX range as having "aluminium decks and ramps, plus a low bed height for easy loading". Woodford lists an "Alloy tread plate floor" as an extra.

Ask the seller what the deck is made of, and look at it where the tracks run and where a bucket has been set down.

The chassis

Two of the makers say what protects the steel:

• Indespension lists a "Fully Welded, Hot-Dipped Galvanised Chassis", which it says is "For maximum strength and corrosion resistance"
• Towmate says the chassis of its Rhino "is hot-dipped galvanised", which it says "protects it from the elements and provides a hard-wearing surface" (Towmate: Rhino Plant Trailers)

Ask the seller whether the chassis is galvanised. On any plant trailer look underneath for rust, cracks at the welds and bent members, and look at the mudguards and the rear corners for knocks.

Towmate also says its design is modular, which it says makes the trailer "easier to maintain". If a part has been replaced, ask which and why.

How the machine is held

• Indespension lists "Multiple Lashing Rings" on two of its ranges.
• Its Autoclamp range holds an excavator by its tracks. Indespension says "The clamping system operates as the excavator tracks drive into the clamping mechanism", and that it "self-adjusts according to different track heights".
• Towmate lists a "strapless digger system" among its optional upgrades.
• Indespension says the Autoclamp trailer "is also fitted with a bucket and boom rest, which is fastened using a securing pin". Woodford lists a "Bucket rest" as standard.

Count the lashing rings and pull on each one. If the trailer has a clamp, ask the seller to show it working, with a machine if there is one to hand, and ask which machines it has carried. Check that the bucket rest and its pin are there.

What came with it

Woodford's standard list includes a spare wheel, a "Heavy Duty jockey wheel", LED lights, "Anti slip steps" and a coupling "with barrel lock". Its options include a "Ladder rack" and a "Datatag Trailer Kit". Indespension lists "Sealed For Life Bearings", which it says protect "against ingress of dirt and grime".

A used trailer may have lost what it left the factory with. Ask whether the spare wheel and the lock and its keys are included, and switch the lights on. If the advert names a marking kit, ask what the seller has to show for it.

What to say in an advert, and what to ask

• ramp, push-in ramps or split tailgate
• flat deck or beavertail
• what the deck is made of
• whether the chassis is galvanised
• lashing rings, a clamp, a bucket rest
• the number of axles
• the spare wheel, the lock and any marking kit