Advice on safety at work for a driver

Hi, New to this forum, I would just like some advice please, my company have just got me a new truck and the box body really leaks in water really bad, and my company keep expecting me to take it out, I think it is unsafe to work in the back when the floor is soaking wet all over, would I be in my right to refuse to drive it.

Defect it for letting rain or water in. But refusal to drive it because of that is going to be tricky I suspect.

Do you not go out walking anywhere when it rains? Just in case you might slip over?

Is it inherently that wet it is dangerous or is it just slippy? So extra care needs to be taken?

Fridges get icy and wet floors but at least have an anti slip coating.

Does the floor have an anti slip coating?

Some pictures of how wet it gets might help people give you better advice.

But as I said defect it first and make it known preferably in writing you feel it is dangerous and could cause a slip, the ball is in their court then and you have covered yourself and they would be liable if you hurt yourself after being told it’s fine to carry on.

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Hi, thank you very much, the floor isn’t anti slip just normal floor board, it’s just as I have to tilt heavy equipment on to trolley just worry as I’m going to slip, I’ll defect it and put it in writing.

Thank you

Stevewood1275:
Hi, thank you very much, the floor isn’t anti slip just normal floor board, it’s just as I have to tilt heavy equipment on to trolley just worry as I’m going to slip, I’ll defect it and put it in writing.

Thank you

Make sure you do put it in writing and don’t forget to wear safety boots, if you do have a fall they are liable…

All the above advice is sound, I would also point out that any goods carried will be getting wet. Most customers expect their merchandise in a dry undamaged condition for some unknown reason.

I know that the word New can mean new to you. If its new tackle then it shouldnt leak. The box obviously has to be fixed.

Stevewood1275:
Hi, New to this forum, I would just like some advice please, my company have just got me a new truck and the box body really leaks in water really bad, and my company keep expecting me to take it out, I think it is unsafe to work in the back when the floor is soaking wet all over, would I be in my right to refuse to drive it.

i had such a trailer in hamburg and refused to load magazines. they would have been recycling paper as it was all week raining. thats the negativity when you change loaded trailers on the route, you can’t check.
don’t load if it is not safe for you, load, and public.

I would drill a hole in the floor to let it drain away , if the boss asks just say " I wondered what that was for"…solved :neutral_face:

Hope you’re not carrying chemicals Class 4.3

If you can getnan emaol address fprbthe transport manager pr ops manager, I would take photos while its wet amd send it just so they “are aware”. Its a polite way of passong the blame for the problem to them so they can’t deny knowing and might get tjem moving on the subject.

As for refusing - unless its really slippy amd impossible to move the machinery safely, I would stick to the above. They’d likely argue that your boots are wet when its raining outside, thus its no worse than that (kindof true). But refusing without really watertight evidence, is probably a good way to a P45.

trevHCS:
If you can getnan emaol address fprbthe transport manager pr ops manager, I would take photos while its wet amd send it just so they “are aware”. Its a polite way of passong the blame for the problem to them so they can’t deny knowing and might get tjem moving on the subject.

As for refusing - unless its really slippy amd impossible to move the machinery safely, I would stick to the above. They’d likely argue that your boots are wet when its raining outside, thus its no worse than that (kindof true). But refusing without really watertight evidence, is probably a good way to a P45.

:smiley:

Make sure that where you are delivering to ‘‘discovers’’ :wink: how wet the goods you are delivering to them are, hopefully you will keep getting loads rejected when it is raining.

Do you have an incident book at work, if you do, fill it out.
Are you in a union?