at the end of the day its the drivers responsibility full stop. If you take it onto a public highway and something breaks loose and falls onto the carriageway…you will get nicked as you are the contact, on saying that, when picking up from a third party supplier, your company should have told them their requirements, now providing there are supporting bars/straps etc, then i would assume they would load according to their customers requirements or they will lose the contract, but, whilst loading, it is possible to speak to someone in charge to ask them if you can have a quick peak inside to be on the safe side, any loss of stock will be on their head as theyre the ones who sealed it, your responsibility lies within the way its loaded and secured. If they give you the seal, then its an open door policy to help yourself, then seal it as the onus is on them.
I had a load to deliver to the Supercheap warehouse. It’s a chain of car parts shops over here. As the forkie was putting the shrink wrapped pallets on I saw two with imitation chamois leathers on the bottom with vices on top. Even with the shrink wrap on they were all wonky. There was a fair bit of snarling and swearing when I made the warehouse idiots take 'em all off and stack the things properly. Don’t say strap 'em down cos I’d have been opening curtains and tightening straps every 100 yards. So I stand by what I and others have said… check everything.
Just write on your check sheet or what ever
Trailer sealed before arrival with number xxxx could not inspect load.
if you want to cover your self a bit more write asked “Chris Peacock” to open and replace seal he refused.
Covers you if stopped noting the number down shows you done a walk around check and checked the rear doors etc
I worked for Sainsbury’s for best part of six years and if I went to pick a trailer up and found it sealed I always broke the seal to check the load was barred up properly then got security to re-seal the trailer on the way out. Never had an issue and was never questioned about it.
The trailers we pull are bolt sealed before we get there and are classed as a valuable load so we aren’t aloud to know what we are carrying nor does the company know what is loaded in them so load security is out of our hands really, if something was to happen though who would get the blame driver or loaders?
MGR1610:
The trailers we pull are bolt sealed before we get there and are classed as a valuable load so we aren’t aloud to know what we are carrying nor does the company know what is loaded in them so load security is out of our hands really, if something was to happen though who would get the blame driver or loaders?
If you don’t know what your carrying then how do you know you are legal?
Just because the office tell you, doesn’t mean it’s right!
THE DRIVER IS RESPONSIBLE FOR VEHICLE AND LOAD.
Ask yourself this question…
who’s ■■■ is going to get chewed by VOSA and the law if you have an accident due to the load being insecure, you are… I see no issue with requesting the trailer unsealed with a witness to check…and resealed…
If thats not possible, then find some other mug to do the job… its my licence…
It’s possible to think that in a “driver just drives a sealed trailer”, the responsibility of load security stays with the loading staff. So if plod stop you, open the back and it’s a mess, it’s the loader that cops a packet.
Would be interesting if they then say you cannot continue on your merry way drive, until you’ve sorted it yourself…
Coo, life can get a bit tangled, can’t it?
puballday:
a) Whose responsible for the load?
b) Where would we as a driver stand should be get stopped by police/vosa and the load has not been supported and/or is generally trashed and all over the place with loose moving pallets (or what about uneven loading especially on double deck trailers)?Would be interested to hear your thoughts on this
a) Driver.
b) Up the creek without a paddle.
peterm:
Don’t live in England, .
Depend on what it is in the country where you live
I collect sealed box trailers all the time all we get is 1 sheet of paper with some numbers on some of my detail ie reg box number then hand written on is the load number delivered to 1 of are other depto never had a problem
I’d be the first to admit I’m not keen on being awkward and overly rule based its all about looking after yourself as no one else will. You know what the authorities are like. If its not enshrined in EU regs or highway code that the loader takes responsibility in leu of a driver if trailer sealed then that’s that. A company putting a seal on is a commercial security thing for themselves and their interests, not required or asked for by the law men. Do it but do it in the full knowledge that the men in battenberg hats view it as your job to check.
And to paraphrase obi-wan-kenobi the massive companies that put the food on the nation’s table are not the cowboy operators VOSA are looking for.
I would tend to disagree with this. I did one run through an agency for a major supermarket. I turned up on site and was handed a set of keys to a toilet of a Scania which looked more like the yard shunter, given an old envelope with the trailer number scrawled in pen on it and sent merrily on my way. Door seal on driver’s door was knackered so there was a gale of wind blowing in the whole time and when I got to 56 on the motorway my seat began shaking from side to side so I had to stop to make sure a wheel wasn’t falling off.
I’d only ever driven for a small firm who keep their motors immaculate and everything legal and above board so it was an interesting experience!
hook itup,rally it towards the gate,and try and flip it over both sides… if its not tipped by the time you reach the gate,then itl be shiny side up by the time you reach the store.if it does flip,then it must have been loaded wrong,or isn’t that a good argument?
dieseldog999:
hook itup,rally it towards the gate,and try and flip it over both sides… if its not tipped by the time you reach the gate,then itl be shiny side up by the time you reach the store.if it does flip,then it must have been loaded wrong,or isn’t that a good argument?
Bang on… 