Based on watching a very painful boat retrieval at the dock last week, I can tell you the handles CAN fall off. I think they are generally just held on with a nut and bolt. I watched someone drop theirs in the water 4 separate times as a few of us were waiting, waiting, and waiting to take out. Eventually, I got in the water and loaded the boat on his trailer for him since he also was backup challenged and had angled the trailer 8 feet away from the dock.