How long does a trailer last?

When we went through European Type approval our colleagues at the VCA (Vehicle Certification Agency) assured us that by 2020 most  trailers  on the road would comply with the law.

Well the trailer brought into our workshop this week  was manufactured in 1978, it needed new bearings and a small mod at the front.  It had not lived in a salt environment, but at  41 years  it still had a long way to go.

As for the VCA well I am sitting in my office looking out the window  and I can clearly see yet  another  flock of pink elephants flying past!!