paul@midway:
TBH i really couldnt give a duck if anyone runs bent or not , as long as i stay legal and dont get fined then i dont give a hoot what anyone else does …
as the saying goes " i,m alright jack "
its there buisness and not mine so i dont comment nor stick my nose into it .
perhaps it should be, it’s because of the “i’m alright jack” attitude that the industry is the way it is. these operators running bent are saving money and are therefore able to do the work other companies would charge more to do, the companies “running bent” have (as per the vosa terminology) an unfair advantage on the operators running legal.
so where would you draw the line then?
unlicenced trucks is ok i suppose?
no o licence either is ok then right?
running on cherry too - i’ll bet you think thats fair enough too?
what about a class 2 driver nipping out in the artic for a short run too - is that ok?
hell - i tell you what let’s not bother at all with vosa - we can go back to those dodgy old trucks with bald tyres and worn out brakes - lets have a few more sowerby bridge type accidents and a few more road deaths because of poor maintainence and drivers hours offences.
you’d be singing a different tune if a member of your family had been put into the ground before their time due to a tired driver that should have stopped driving 3 hours earlier - or would you?
do you think it’s also ok to keep driving when you know your tired?
is the load and the browny points worth the nightmare of remembering that face that was standing the other side of the broken down car as you ran into the back of it on the hard shoulder, the look of that poor guys face as he looked over the bonnet and saw your juggernaut ploughing into the boot of the car, the shock you feel as you see the body fly through the air like a raggy doll and then as the events go through your mind once more and you realise it’s because of you, that you have done that and that perhaps you should have stopped at the last service area, the regrets and the sorrow and then the hatred you feel towards yourself.
nobody thinks about the driver that did it.
if only someone had called the police earlier when they saw the driver of the lorry swerving across the lanes of the motorway - but then again - “hey jack - i’m alright”.
just a thought like!
Due to an allegedly long series of minoe Tacho errors Hanley’s have just appointed a new Tacho Analyst (Ex Driver). All the recorded arrors were things like not filling in the centre field correctly, taking 44min break instead of a full 45, etc. As a consequence it is now a disciplinary offence to infringe Tacho rules and it is being enforced properly, I think it’s excellent!
johnny:
perhaps it should be, it’s because of the “i’m alright jack” attitude that the industry is the way it is. these operators running bent are saving money and are therefore able to do the work other companies would charge more to do, the companies “running bent” have (as per the vosa terminology) an unfair advantage on the operators running legal.
so where would you draw the line then?
unlicenced trucks is ok i suppose?
no o licence either is ok then right?
running on cherry too - i’ll bet you think thats fair enough too?
what about a class 2 driver nipping out in the artic for a short run too - is that ok?
hell - i tell you what let’s not bother at all with vosa - we can go back to those dodgy old trucks with bald tyres and worn out brakes - lets have a few more sowerby bridge type accidents and a few more road deaths because of poor maintainence and drivers hours offences.
you’d be singing a different tune if a member of your family had been put into the ground before their time due to a tired driver that should have stopped driving 3 hours earlier - or would you?
do you think it’s also ok to keep driving when you know your tired?
is the load and the browny points worth the nightmare of remembering that face that was standing the other side of the broken down car as you ran into the back of it on the hard shoulder, the look of that poor guys face as he looked over the bonnet and saw your juggernaut ploughing into the boot of the car, the shock you feel as you see the body fly through the air like a raggy doll and then as the events go through your mind once more and you realise it’s because of you, that you have done that and that perhaps you should have stopped at the last service area, the regrets and the sorrow and then the hatred you feel towards yourself.
nobody thinks about the driver that did it.
if only someone had called the police earlier when they saw the driver of the lorry swerving across the lanes of the motorway - but then again - “hey jack - i’m alright”.
just a thought like!
Wise words Johnny, couldn’t agree more.
I agree with Johnny also 
I see so many accidents where drivers have fallen asleep and some poor innocent family are wiped out.
In this part of the world having no tachographs it is easy to run bent I even admit that I have done it myself when I first started out just to keep a job. My company now knows me better and there is no way I will do that for their benefit If they give me a run that gets back late, I take the full break and the next load is delivered late. They seem to always make sure I get a run that can be done in the legal time now. I still always try and get at least two hours in the sleeper (the minimum required to split the rest hours, just in case, then if needed I can extend my day a bit and shorten the rest of the break time.
If tacho’s became law here I dread to think how many companies would go to the wall 
All these stories about O/D’s running bent are a load of bovine excretia if you ask me.
Every O/D I know is a “sole trader” & as such if he/she were to lose their “O”/Driving licence then they would lose their business.
If you have any debts in the company ie truck finance,outstanding vat,income tax,trailer finance etc etc you are still liable to pay as the debts are personally liable.
So it’s just not worth even considering “running bent” & I never do.
Infact because I dont run bent I was able to prove my innocence when sombody else was using my name on their tachos & had got caught.Where would running bent have got me then?
So the next time an O/D tells you he/she’s doing t is or doing that or" I know someone who’s …"
treat it the same way as the “I was in the sas” “I’m getting 2 quid a mile” stories.
They are normally just urban myths
The only people who I have ever come across who fiddle their tachos have been employees not O/D’s
paul@midway:
TBH i really couldnt give a duck if anyone runs bent or not ,
So is that the same as “I don’t care if people drink-drive; I won’t do it!”■■
I bet you ‘give a duck’ when it’s your wife/kids/brother/sister/etc who get wiped out by a tired/illegal/drunk driver. 
Johnny has covered most of what I wanted to say.
Load of crap the if’s and but’s
Although there is a few valid points most of the points could be done by a legal in hours driver …
cruising on the limiter on a dual carriageway does not bother me. i do it myself most of the time but the drivers who go out of their way to break the law are causing accidents and unfair trade. on top of that, they are the reason that the authorites are all over us. most police officers wouldnt bat an eyelid at a truck doing 56 on a dual carriageway but 70 is a different story. 5 minutes over your driving/working time is no major catastrophe but there are drivers out there who are pushing 5 hours over their time.
these are the people who are causing problems for the rest of us and they are looking out for number 1. i thought truckers stuck together with the exception of these cowboys. isnt that why we are here in the first place? so we can chat (and argue 
) amongst our own kind
paul@midway:
Load of crap the if’s and but’s
Although there is a few valid points most of the points could be done by a legal in hours driver …
i’ve been that what if and if i hadn’t been legal at the time i would quite possibly still be languishing in a french prison.
the words i write contain some element of experience, some things that happen in your life you will never be able to completely forget - you may get over them for most of the time but they will always be there - lurking at the beck of your mind - they will reach for the surface at times - something brings about a sudden thought and the next thing you know the memories of that day are upon you.
it’s the aftermath of the events that affects you and not the events leading up to them - you don’t recall the evnts before too well but the events just after will always remain with you.
there is nothing worse that i can imagine than standing over a man and watching him bleed to death and knowing that it’s your fault - that you were driving the vehicle that struck him and stole his life away from him forever.
then consider the idea that whilst waiting at the police station the dead mans grieving family come and sit on the seats around you - next to you - opposite you - father, mother, brother, sister etc.
even when your not to blame you still blame yourself - because to you there is nobody else to blame - you were driving - nobody else, if things had been different - if only things had been different.
yes a law abiding driver can get caught out just like one who has been running bent - drinking and driving etc. but who will end up behind bars?
who’s accident will become yet another reason for the general public to hate trucks and truck drivers?
whilst an unlucky driver will receive the help of friends and the assurance that they weren’t to blame - a stupid driver that chose to break the law will have no such luxury to keep them looking for a brighter future, they will always have the finger of guilt pointed in their direction.
paul@midway:
most of the points could be done by a legal in hours driver …
True. However, during the Road Safety Officer course I did there was a never ending stream of stats/reports/research/examples of how greatly the risk increases by a tired overworked fatigued unrested driver.
It’s not ‘ifs & buts’; it’s facts that are based on numbers of lives that have been lost or ruined.
i think all yous over there are very lucky to have the tachos. i wish that my government would start to equip them in the trucks over here. i’ve seen too many wrecks usually because the driver can’t react fast enough. an ill effect caused by long hours on uncongested motorways.
the one incident that really sticks in my head is when i saw the aftermath of a truck that hit a bridge support head on. the force of the impact crushed the cab of the truck underneath the trailer. the trailer had broken in half. and worst of all, nobody could distinguish the two occupants of the truck because they had both turned into a pink jelly like substance. for some reason i had to get out of my truck and get a closer look. it still tugs at my heart. i’ve seen my fair share of murder victims and freak accident kind of stuff. this was hardly the first time that i was exposed to a dead person. it was because i drive a truck that it bothered me so much. i know all to well the feeling of being behind the wheel for so long that it starts to feel like the truck is breaking me. the rest of the night, i kept looking down at the steering wheel and picturing it cutting my body in two. trying to recreate in my mind the poor driver’s last few seconds accompanied by Radiohead’s “No Surprises.”. these trucks are no joke. the weights of these things are serious. it would be nice if everyone respected how easily these trucks can kill. but they don’t . so the government has decided to step in. i agree with the majority that running bent is not worth it. one because of public safety, and two because it allows an unfair business advantage.
There isnt an infallible way to fiddle tachos, or alter cards without getting caught. There are many who have tried,
I see it often, pulling the card when they get to a port or delivery point winding clocks forward and back, pinching the hour
Driving very slowly to avoid marking the card Reversing around a factory to a parking area
As Pat said, bending needles to cover speeding infringements
Switches in cabs and paperclips. Its all been tried, they all get caught.
I am not squeeky clean by a long chalk, There was a time when you would change cards at every border crossing 
Throw cards away and take the risk of not having records
Things have altered a lot over the years, It just isnt worth the risk anymore!
But, if anyone decides to try it, then you are more likely to get an easy hearing if you show what you have done, and explained it, then trying to cover up and interupt electrical supplies and altering the times. To alter them this way, is Fraud.
And for those that drive modern trucks, altering the tacho clock will not alter the internal clocks of an engine management system. Neither will altering the clock change the times on factory security logs, or weighbridge tickets. All of which will be used by Vosa to incriminate yourself.
so are you now going back on your statement of a few days ago that all o/d’s run bent?
the last bit of what malc has just said is right its alright trying this that and the next thing but when the garage plugs in the laptop to download all your computers truck performance it will all show up.
SO… good luck
i know 1 firm in leeds that run bent and they do italy 6 drops a3 collections and back in 5 days and when you go for the job the big question is …
" CAN YOU PEDDLE IT "
so take that as you will.
jessicas dad:
im for a shafting
oh my god im in for it now …
its people doing euro work that ive met running bent…
now now all you doing euro work dont jump on me
:
JD doesn’t enjoy life does he?
Coffeeholic - You sit on him while I thump him! 
, find em clips boy, lets get going
