I reckon this should be in the bull[zb]-I-have-heard thread, but the current HGV Direct catalogue claims ‘it is now law to have a torch in your cab’.
What law is this? The only things we could come up with were ADR (which needs a torch I think) and a bit of vague stuff about doing proper walkaround checks.
Or is it just a ■■■■■■■■■■■■ attempt to sell more torches?
I think you do have to have a torch as part of your ADR kit. The real experts will be along in a minute to put us both right.
It’s a pity you didn’t mention a DCPC Instructor told you, this thread would turn into a ten pager.
W
I’m pretty sure it is a requirement for you to have a torch in your cab,that’s what I’ve always been told anyway,how else are you suppose to carry out your checks in the middle of nowhere when it’s black as yer hat??..I have also been told that VOSA do check whether you have one if you get pulled(have only ever been pulled once by police doing an ADR check,never VOSA)
ADR requires that a torch is part of your kit.
I was told by someone but it was a mmtm that it’s law to have a torch in the cab but this person has also come out with some mad vosa/police stories so I didn’t take much notice.
But I have carried one in the cab for years anyway.
Sounds a bit like the one where you can’t have more than 2 nights away in a cab you can’t stand up in!
It’s common sense to carry a torch, but it’s not the law.
I always carried a torch anyway, also have one in the car, legal requirement or not it makes good sense to me.
However on the occasions I have been stopped by VOSA I was never asked if I had one, if it was something that must be carried as part of the required equipment it should be provided by the company and also be part of the MoT like other legal requirements are.
i have one for checks in the pitch black but never heard of it being law
Got a torch built into my phone so as long as I got my phone I’m alright in fact use it a fair bit at 04.00 in the morning.
A bloke told me he’d been fined £40 by the police for not having a torch , he got off lightly 'cos it would have been £80 if it had been dark 
Mine has a wind-up LED torch in the locker that was there when I got the truck. I use a head torch for walkaround checks as it leaves the hands free which is errr handy!
It’s hardly an inconvenience to carry a torch, most company’s will give you a torch/new batteries when required.
Dont forget spare Batteries
Hiya …always had a tourch…they don’t take up much space…i think you’ll find it was’nt untill the late
60’s there was no interior light when you opened the door so you needed a tourch to find the switches
that switched the inerior light on…not like nowadays you can open the door andi ts like blackpool lights
Yes to a tourch
ADR needs to be ‘Intrinsically Safe’, other than that I have a smallish wind up one which clips to my jacket for doing vehicle checks. Pretty sure its not law though, well only as far as plod or vosa saying you can’t do your checks in the dark properly without one.
chicane:
ADR needs to be ‘Intrinsically Safe’, other than that I have a smallish wind up one which clips to my jacket for doing vehicle checks. Pretty sure its not law though, well only as far as plod or vosa saying you can’t do your checks in the dark properly without one.
My english not good enough to explain you exactly,but ADR needs a Tourch which makes no sparkes by switching on/off
Intrinsically safe means exactly that LP
However the only thing written in ADR is:
8.1.5.2 The following equipment shall be carried on the transport unit:
(snip) Portable lighting apparatus conforming to 8.3.4
8.3.4 The portable lighting apparatus used shall not exhibit any metal surface liable to produce sparks.
Foxstein:
‘…fined … for not having a torch, he got off lightly …’
Arf-arf 
The latest V.O.S.A scheme is if you are stopped for having a blown headlight bulb or similar, they plug a laptop into your truck and can tell how long it’s been out, they then compare this to your tachograph and are able to prove that you started your journey without attempting to rectify the fault. Resulting in a fixed penalty of £60, this must be true a man in a waiting room told me.
We have to carry a torch in our cab’s as required by the Animal Transport Welfare regs for carrying Livestock…and we do get checked to see if were carrying one when pulled by Vosa if trading standards are present at the checkpoint 
I carry one of those tine LED ones that clip on a key ring. They look pathetic in daylight but are plenty good enough to check a fifth wheel in the dark, or to find the switch cos some git turned the interior lights off.
