9 min read
Does a caravan or trailer need a pink slip in NSW?
Light trailers and caravans over five years old need a pink slip each year. Which ones are exempt, what gets checked, and what tends to add cost.
Mobile caravan and trailer pink slips in Sydney
Caravans, camper trailers, boat trailers and more, checked where they’re stored, for the same price as a car’s pink slip.
What it costs
The same as a car’s: $140 on weekdays across most of Sydney, including GST. It costs more in some outer Sydney council areas, and weekends cost extra.
Before you book, check that
- Its rego is current, or ran out less than three months ago. After three months it needs a blue slip, which a mobile inspection can’t do.
- Its aggregate trailer mass (ATM) is 4.5 tonnes or less. It’s on the compliance plate.
- It’s parked on a hard, flat surface, like a concrete driveway or an asphalt car park, with room to walk all the way around it.
What to have ready
- Park it on a hard, flat surface. Grass, gravel and soft ground aren’t suitable inspection sites.
- Have the tow vehicle there if you can, for the brake and light tests.
- Make sure the VIN or chassis number on the trailer is there and readable.
- Check the compliance plate for its tare and ATM, and tell us about its brakes when you book.
Caravans and trailers we inspect
We inspect any light trailer or caravan with an ATM of 4.5 tonnes or less that needs a pink slip for its rego. Small ones don’t need one at all: caravans under 411kg tare, and trailers under 251kg tare without brakes.
- Caravans and pop-tops
- Camper trailers
- Box and cage trailers
- Boat and jet ski trailers
- Car trailers and tilt trailers
- Horse floats
- Enclosed, food and work trailers
What the inspection checks
It follows the Transport for NSW standards for light trailers and caravans, the same ones a station uses. Gas, water and the van’s own wiring aren’t part of it.
- The coupling and drawbar: secure, not cracked, and marked with its rating and maker
- Safety chains: the right size for its weight, permanently attached and clear of the ground
- Brakes and the park brake, where they’re fitted
- Wheels and tyres: tread depth, cuts and bulges, cracked rims and missing nuts
- Every lamp and reflector, and the number plate and its light
- The body, mudguards and suspension, including rust at the mounting points
What customers say
4.9out of 5 stars
811 Google reviews across our listingsCat Wiley
Reviewed in 2025
★★★★★
Answered the call on a Sunday. Able to do an urgent, same day call out for a caravan pink slip. They gave an accurate ETA, and sorted it out on the spot. Happy to pay the weekend call out fee to get this sorted before I forgot again.
Yousif Abbas
Reviewed in 2025
★★★★★
Quality service right at your front door, my new go to! Chris was amazing and his work says a lot about him. Would definitely recommend the boys at Pink Slip Approach.
Dan Kinsela
Reviewed in 2026
★★★★★
Honestly the best and most honest company. Professional skilled mechanics, honest and fast. Highly recommend.
We were named a winner in the 2026 Local Business Awards for Cumberland City, two years after we started.
Questions about caravan and trailer pink slips
If it is more than five years old and has an aggregate trailer mass of 4.5 tonnes or less, yes. Trailers under 251kg tare without brakes, and caravans under 411kg tare, are exempt.
Does a caravan or trailer need a pink slip?The same as a car’s: $140 on weekdays across most of Sydney, including GST. It costs more in some outer Sydney council areas, and weekends cost extra.
Check your suburb’s priceNo. We only inspect caravans and trailers where they’re kept, so book a mobile visit and we’ll come to it.
It helps. Brakes other than override brakes, and the park brake, are tested with the trailer hitched to the tow vehicle, and the trailer’s lights need the plug connected to work. Tell us when you book if the tow vehicle won’t be there.
If it ran out less than three months ago, yes, and you can renew as usual once it passes. After three months it has to be registered again, which needs a blue slip, and a mobile inspection can’t be used for that.
Rego already expired? What to do nowNo. Trailers and caravans don’t need CTP insurance to renew their rego. They still need a pink slip once they’re more than five years old, unless they’re exempt.
Six months from the day of the inspection, the same as a car’s. Renew the registration inside that time or you’ll need a new inspection.
The technician tells you what needs attention and talks you through your options.
Your car failed its pink slip. What now?We lodge the result with Transport for NSW straight away, so you can renew your rego through Service NSW. We email the invoice. The report lasts six months, so renew inside that window.
How long a pink slip lastsRelated guides
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Caravan or trailer due?
Book it as a mobile pink slip and put the trailer’s rego and make in the car details. We’ll call to arrange a time that suits you.