New in job and this week I was presented with a speeding infringement?
Looked at it but at no point did I exceed 60mph. I assume it’s because I exceeded the limiter speed??
Anyway refused to accept as said when it contravenes the RTA and would have had led to points on my licence then yes I’ll accept but not because some limiter is set at 56 and I let it run down the hill over it. I still braked to stay legal and I know exactly where I did the ‘offence’ as I had to cancel the tacho information crap.
TM says I have to accept it as I was speeding, I say I wasn’t .
I did compromise and say as I now know you want me to never ever exceed 56mph I won’t but don’t expect me to sign it retrospectively .
Am I being unreasonable?
Don’t think they even have an effect on my record as such it’s just I was in a on principle mood lol
You could sign something to say you contravened a company regulation to not exceed 56mph, they employ you, they set the rules they want you to follow, but I wouldn’t be signing to say I’d been speeding when I wasn’t.
The infringement is … you have allowed the vehicle to exceed its powered speed limit in essence you allowed the vehicle to coast. which is illegal as far as I am a where as your not under full control of the vehicle ( automatics )
bite the bullet and put your hand up and learn some firms wont tolerate over speeding and as such you’ve put yourself in a “we can use it against you to sack you spot” watch out that you don’t get any more infringement’s …It don’t have to be law for any infringement the company can make their own policy and discipline you on it.
nick2008:
The infringement is … you have allowed the vehicle to exceed its powered speed limit in essence you allowed the vehicle to coast. which is illegal as far as I am a where as your not under full control of the vehicle ( automatics )
Utter rubbish. It would only be coasting if its in neutral and it would state it was in neutral if it did do that. If its not in neutral then it is using engine overrun for braking and is under full control. You can get an overspeed indicated in a truck with a manual gearbox going downhill. Is that in neutral? Is that not in full control?
Given the new DAFs go into “neutral” and its a design feature yet they’ve passed type approval and are allowed on the road I suspect this whole claim being in neutral is an offence is nothing more than typical RDC bollox.
There’s no law which states what the overspeed on the tacho is set to and I’ve driven trucks where its been 1km over the speed limiter setting. Its there to warn you you’re getting a bit close to possibly speeding downhill, the same as it flashes to let you know you’re getting near a 4.5hr driving period and need to take a break. Its not there to haul you over the coals with.
nick2008:
The infringement is … you have allowed the vehicle to exceed its powered speed limit in essence you allowed the vehicle to coast. which is illegal as far as I am a where as your not under full control of the vehicle ( automatics )
bite the bullet and put your hand up
At no point did I let the vehicle coast, to me that’s putting it in neutral and letting it go under its own momentum, it was in gear, FULLY under control so where does the illegal bit come in??
When I go back tomorrow going to tell him I’ll sign but I’ll be putting an objection on it.
Accept if it’s company policy but they have to tell me first!
If he says it on my records then no way signing it. Sack me if they want but very much doubt it
Agree with Connor it isn’t coasting so not illegal.
One of the benefits of being agency is I can use my skill and experience as a driver to safely & legally get the most out of a vehicle without having to put up with this bollox, I try not to get the tacho flashing as it is annoying and distracting.
The legal limit on UK motorways is 60MPH not 52 or 50 (or any other arbitrary speed decided by some ■■■■ in an office) and using downhill momentum to save fuel both going down and then a bit up the next (where and when it is safe to do so) is part and parcel of economic driving and if any TM says anything they can go and self replicate.
I know about the coasting and its always been one thing ive been against as you have said some vehicles drop out of gear ie the old merc’s did it and I always felt that was wrong …
dcgpx:
if it’s company policy but they have to tell me first!
If he says it on my records then no way signing it. Sack me if they want but very much doubt it
I have to agree with that fella i’m in agreement with you 100% don’t get me wrong the coasting bit was more so in a manual box as some motors automatically engine break when overspeed starts
Forget the over speeds.
yes it could be a company thing going over 56 mph but you could get an over speed doing 40 mph in a 50mph zone if you have set the limiter at that.
Just tell them you were on eco roll to save them some mpg.
I do my own tacho analysis, using Tachomaster software. This flags up two different things, eu Drivers Regulations infringements, and warnings. See key at the bottom of this analysis page.
Warnings means speeding and harsh braking. Speeding means exceeding 56mph for (I think) 30 seconds, but it is a warning, not an infringement, you could collect these warnings several times a day, every day of the week, and neither the Police or DVSA would be remotely interested in them.
You should sign, there’s no reason not to, and by doing so your company is able to produce a paper trail showing that they conform with DVSA’a requirements to analyse data and act on anything other than a “green” day.
I think I’d just write “I acknowledge that the arbitrary speed limit prescribed by the company was exceeded, but it did not exceed that permitted under Schedule 6 Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 and so no offence was committed” and sign that (that’s always assuming it was on a Motorway, of course…).
Unless they sack you for getting infringements just sign them walk out and forget about it they think they have done there job and you get on with yours.
Roymondo:
I think I’d just write “I acknowledge that the arbitrary speed limit prescribed by the company was exceeded, but it did not exceed that permitted under Schedule 6 Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 and so no offence was committed” and sign that (that’s always assuming it was on a Motorway, of course…).
I don’t quite go into that much detail, but this is essentially what I have put before. My current gaffer is a driver as well, and as such we don’t get over speeding infringements. Unless we broke 60mph of course.
mac12:
Unless they sack you for getting infringements just sign them walk out and forget about it they think they have done there job and you get on with yours.
I would sign nothing, one of my lorrys was coming up with overspeed on a flat road whilst I am being overtaken by another lorry. Check the tacho calibration date and if its over 6 months tell them you do not accept its accuracy
puntabrava:
Check the tacho calibration date and if its over 6 months tell them you do not accept its accuracy
If he tells them that, they’ll just think he’s the type of mouth-breathing truck driver moron occasionally found in RDC waiting rooms, and even sometimes on internet forums.
Tachographs need to be calibrated every two years.
puntabrava:
I would sign nothing, one of my lorrys was coming up with overspeed on a flat road whilst I am being overtaken by another lorry. Check the tacho calibration date and if its over 6 months tell them you do not accept its accuracy
Funny enough it’s due 23rd of this month !
Was looking at axle weights this morning as had to load up some heavy alloy to deliver and noticed tacho label next to weight plate !
Had it been me I would have sat you down in a corner with a cup of tea, explained what the analysis showed, asked you if you remembered when it happened and what you were doing and then politely asked you to sign the debrief to acknowledge I had spoken to you about it.
If it was the third time I was talking to you about the same infringement then I may have done something more such as discussed the route or load or how you think it can be avoided. Only if I felt you were not taking on board what I was saying or doing it deliberately would I even think about doing something more serious.
far too many TM’s seem to want to wave the big stick and threaten drivers. The ‘ooooh! you’ve broken the law!’ (spoken in a suitable pantomime dame voice) attitude of some TM’s sickens me.
The bloke who taught me to be a TM always said one thing - Where’s the mischief? If there is none then the right thing to do is TALK about it (and keep a record for the TC of the conversation)
I also call it ‘treating drivers like the adults they are’
nick2008:
I know about the coasting and its always been one thing ive been against as you have said some vehicles drop out of gear ie the old merc’s did it and I always felt that was wrong …
Most modern trucks “coast” controlled by the ecu, Vovlo ishift on cruise control coasts to save fuel.
and if any TM says anything they can go and self replicate.
