#1 REASON TO HAVE A TRAILER HITCH (Even if you never tow anything)

If someone uses their trailer hitch a lot, and it's a PITA to take off and back on every day or couple times a day. Or, they used it to tow their boat and forgot and left in on...
I don't see an issue.

But, if someone purposely installs it, thinking it's going to prevent damage to their truck and eff the next guy. That is just being an inconsiderate fool. And they better keep an eye over their shoulder because 'ole lady Karma...she's a real bitch.

 

I searched Massachusetts generals laws and found no reference to leaving the trailer hitch in the receiver - although I do admit it may be there but I could not find it with various searches. ( I also realize you can not block the view of the license plate with the ball or other obstructions). It's hard to find any real reference to this other than hearsay. I did find this though....
http://drivinglaws.aaa.com/laws/trailer-hitch-signals/
This mostly references the safety requirements on towing requirements.

I'd like to find out if this law is real or myth propagated by those who "think" or "heard" it was a law.

 

Having a sharp object hanging off the vehicle is NOT the same as having an industry standard option on your vehicle. The receivers and hitches are available from the Factory and dealers. By your logic any after market item may not be lawful (i.e. Changed bumpers, bed caps, etc.).

 

you know long ago and far away there used to be this thing called a hitch that was solidly mounted to the vehicle without a disconnecting ballmount and receiver. Wait a tic...they still make them. Seems to be that it is rather legal and not removable for a reason. The only reason I know that they are removable because it started to be a big PITA to remove rusted balls from the ball mount to change from 1.75 to 2 to 2 5/16 and back and forth. Too much wrenching.

BTW if it rusted in place it prolly shoulda been left there and you wouldn't have had to buy a new one.

 

I took it out because it looked retarded. It was one of those 3 way hitches so was no use to me if I couldn't pull it around and flip it over if I needed a different size ball. I still have the hitch and it's fine, but the rust in the receiver fucked it all up. I quite honestly wouldn't trust it for towing anything very far anyway for fear of pulling it apart.

 

I had something similar on my old Caprice...looked fine, until I stood on it to load something on the roof. It promptly broke apart. Looked fine outside...but had rotted from the inside! (And the idiot had towed a 3-ton boat from this 3500lb hitch...)