If you are running a farm and use tractors, there's a good chance that your tractor is older than 25 years of age. This is a huge problem because the majority of tractors that were manufactured before 1985 don't have the technology that they need to properly reduce the chances of rolling over and hurting someone. If your tractor does not have a rollover prevention system (ROPS) installed, then there's a good chance that your insurance on that tractor and on your farm is going to be higher than it would be otherwise.
Luckily, it's possible to retrofit your tractor so that it has the ROPS technology. As a result, your insurance costs will likely drop. This can take an extended period of time, so here are some tractor safety tips that you can utilize in order to make sure that your chances of rolling over are as low as possible.
1. Don't Make Sharp Turns
While you are driving your tractor, you want to make sure that you don't make any sharp turns. This is because the weight of the tractor is usually distributed unevenly. Any large, fast change in momentum could cause your tractor to become unbalanced and tip over. If you need to make a turn, you want to make sure that you make it slowly in order to keep the weight as balanced as you can. If you have employees on your farm, make sure that you run them through a training session to show them the proper way to navigate around turns.
2. Only Hitch Trailers and Plows to the Drawbar
Another tip is that you should only be hitching trailers and plows to the drawbar, unless the trailer or plow is specifically designed to fit into the three prong extension on the back of your tractor. If you hitch extra weight to anything that is not designed for hitching, then you are attaching something to the tractor that is going to shift momentum in sudden stops and turns, increasing the chances that the tractor is going to fall over.
3. Avoid Seat Belts
Until you have an ROPS in place in your tractor, you will want to advise anyone that is working with the tractor to avoid wearing a seat belt. A seat belt will cause a person riding the tractor to be trapped in the case of a rollover. To increase overall mobility, consider disabling the seat belts on your tractor until the ROPS is installed.
For more information, talk to an insurance company like Bennett Agency. They will be able to provide more information about how to make your tractors safer and decrease your insurance rates.
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