Trailer hitch requirements

The Iowa Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Office of Motor Vehicle Enforcement (MVE) is reporting an increase in questions related to safe and lawful trailer hitch attachment in Iowa.

The majority of questions relate to whether you must remove the trailer hitch from your vehicle when a trailer is not attached. Iowa DOT’s MVE Major Ned Lewis clarified that there is no Iowa law that requires a hitch be removed when a trailer is not in tow.