VC 29003TBWD eligibleEquipment
Towing connection requirements
The drawbar or other connection between a towing and towed vehicle must be strong enough to support the load and generally may not exceed 15 feet.
Vehicle Code 29003 — statutory text
Official source ↗(a) The drawbar or other connection between any two vehicles, one of which is towing or drawing the other on a highway, shall be of sufficient strength to hold the weight of the towed vehicle under all ordinary conditions of use. (b) The drawbar or other connection shall not exceed 15 feet in length from one vehicle to the other, except the connection between any two vehicles transporting poles, pipe, machinery, or other objects of structural nature that cannot readily be dismembered.
Quoted from the California Legislative Information website. The full section may contain additional subdivisions not reproduced here — click “Official source” for the complete text as currently in force.
Base fine
$238.00
Does not include court fees or assessments.
DMV points
0
No DMV points.
Filing window
30 days
From citation date, use form TR-205-2024.
You can file a Trial by Written Declaration
Under CA Vehicle Code § 40902, infractions may be contested in writing. If the officer fails to respond within their required window, your ticket is dismissed. California requires a bail deposit equal to the fine; it is refunded if dismissed.
Also known as
towing chaindrawbar violationtowing equipment
Defenses our AI considers (12)
- Equipment fixed — correctable violationhistorical success ~80%Equipment violations (window tint, exhaust, lights, plates, wipers, etc.) are correctable in every supported state. Proof of repair signed by a qualified inspector resolves the citation administratively.
- Documentary cure — proof on date of citationhistorical success ~75%Many "failure to produce" charges (insurance, registration, license) are dismissed on proof the document existed and was valid on the date of citation. This is codified in most state fix-it / correctable-violation statutes.
- Sign obscured, missing, or recently changedhistorical success ~50%A driver cannot be held to a regulation that was not reasonably communicated. An obscured, damaged, missing, or recently-changed sign at the cited location is both a mistake-of-fact defense and a due-process notice defect.
- Statute of limitations / speedy-trial violationhistorical success ~45%Every state imposes statutory deadlines between citation, arraignment, and trial. When the state misses a jurisdictional deadline — including officer-declaration deadlines in TBWD proceedings — dismissal is mandatory, not discretionary.
Our AI drafts 3 options per case, tailored to your ticket's facts. You choose or regenerate.