scotstrucker:
well we the drivers would be a lot worse off if they werent there
How?
it would be back too the 80’s and early 90’s where most drivers were doing 90 too a 100 hours a week as the drivers and the gaffers knew there was little chance of getting caught. was not uncommon for lads from the northeast of scotland too be leaving aberdeen at 5pm for a 6am delivery at mandela way in london then after tipping do collections around london (or if you were lucky 1 pick up) and hoof it straight back too the northeast of scotland and repeat it another twice and manage a glasgow at the end of the week. i for one wouldnt like too try that nowadays with all the apnr cameras that are springing up on motorways, duel carriageways, a roads and even some b roads.
i for one am glad there doing what there doing as it’s now making drivers think before doing it coz get caught now ( n i dont mean minor infringements) then it aint only a fine, it’s possibly time at her Majestys pleasure aswell then theres the visit to the tc, and i wouldnt think that before long they will also be applying to courts for the cash the drivers made with the illegal driving they did.
Checking charts and delivery notes would reveal this though? I mean we’ve always had Ministry checks, they never revealed anything? An Operator visit may have revealed this stuff?
it did sometimes but a good driver knew how too fiddle his cards too make everything look legit
I’ve never heard of an operator not being fined if one of their drivers has been fined for hours or loading or vehicle safety offences. I’ve heard of drivers being cautionef and operators fined but not the other way around…
My old boss,for example,recently received a visit and a fine after one of his drivers was stopped for a handheld phone offence(the driver was fined and got a two week suspension from the TC) the company was fined when it came to light that it was the traffic office that had called the driver. Shortly after another of his drivers failed to secure a palletised load of seed in bags. One stack shifted and bulged against the curtain. Police stopped him. He received a FPN and 3points and again the company (green flag registered with DVSA incidentally) received a visit and a large (well into five figures) fine.
Mike-C:
Operators are responsible for drivers hours, this is never reflected in any FPN a driver may recieve for a breach of them.
You sure? I’m pretty sure they’re not called operators hours.
I’m certain. Chapter 3, Article 9 of the current EU drivers hours legislation says…
A transport undertaking shall organise the work of
drivers referred to in paragraph 1 in such a way that the
drivers are able to comply with Regulation (EEC) No 3821/85
and Chapter II of this Regulation. The transport undertaking
shall properly instruct the driver and shall make regular
checks to ensure that Regulation (EEC) No 3821/85 and
Chapter II of this Regulation are complied with
A transport undertaking shall be liable for infringements
committed by drivers of the undertaking, even if the
infringement was committed on the territory of another
Member State or a third country
You can check out the rest of it yourself. But you do have to give that number 3 a double take eh? I wonder if thats ever really been put to the test?
I broadly agree with Mike C’s comments and add the following
The defects I rectify on maintenance inspections have hardly ever been spotted on driver’s daily checks.
Just because you need some authority with responsibility for ensuring road safety and compliance doesn’t mean the one you have is beyond criticism. In fact a traffic comissioner themselves has criticised them for predominantly targetting smaller operators, who generally aim to be compliant, for minor technicalities because this is easiest.
in truth, often the way they discover an operator is breaking the rules is not from visits, roadside pulls or whistleblowing aggrieved former employees but when a serious incident occurs. It’s far too easy to stay off their radar, for any reasonable sized fleet, just by ensurimg first time MOT passes.
The UK is the only country in the EU who specify that vehicles and trailers must be inspected every 4 to 10 weeks, and that period is agreed when you apply for a British Operators licence. Although in general the continentals have a better maintained truck parc than we do
fredthered:
To the OP, it takes less time to get rid of you than it took you to write the post if you ‘stand up for yourself’. Interpretation and all that?
I understand that perfectly and your interpretation is correct. It is common now to “Put the fear of death into people” at work to subjugate silence from workers.
All I can say is that the insidious erosion of protection for workers by the current lot in Westminster, CBI, Institute of Directors and some employers to name just a few. Has and is still being engineered to impact on family’s incomes, resulting in poor pay and conditions and unemployment levels that make a person think and feel they (See line above) are doing you a favour. £7.00 ph really
I would boldly suggest drivers have more power than they imagine. A days industrial action would be more powerful than the fuel disputes and even a month of the Miners strike.
Wheel Nut:
The UK is the only country in the EU who specify that vehicles and trailers must be inspected every 4 to 10 weeks, and that period is agreed when you apply for a British Operators licence. Although in general the continentals have a better maintained truck parc than we do
There’s a case really for smaller operators that the money spent on inspections and sat on account, to satisfy o-licence conditions, would be better spent on buying newer vehicles less likely to fall apart. Problem is the minority that would spoil it for everyone else but, these days I’m just not sure how big that minority is.
Another point on the overloading mentioned earlier, just how seriously do VOSA take it? As the woeful underprovision of weighbridges in this country suggest not very.
At the risk of going off at a slightly unrelated tangent. I’m not sure if these Police twitter feeds spreading the message of their ‘good works’ are such a good idea, as they think they are. They post pictures of uninsured commercial vehicles but does that mean they’re just not on askmid. If it later turned out they were actually covered their could be a loss of business element after being wrongly named and shamed publicly.
Own Account Driver:
At the risk of going off at a slightly unrelated tangent. I’m not sure if these Police twitter feeds spreading the message of their ‘good works’ are such a good idea, as they think they are. They post pictures of uninsured commercial vehicles but does that mean they’re just not on askmid. If it later turned out they were actually covered their could be a loss of business element after being wrongly named and shamed publicly.
Most of the ones I see relate to car drivers. It is only occasionally that there is a operation targetting commercial vehicles when there is a spate of tweets. Very few are HGV’s and more are the tipper transit and pick-up truck type that we all know and love.
They wouldn’t post pics of siezed vehicles without first performing due dillegence on the insurance. Just because its not on MID (I dont think any commercials are) doesn’t mean they sieze a vehicle. It would only be after making additional checks.
PaulNowak:
Slightly off topic, but how would you stand if you being pulled over and kept hanging around was going to throw you over your WTD hours?
I don’t run as close to the bone as I used to, but it’d be good to know if I had a case to argue if I got a tug, and needed to be back. I’ve only got a day cab after all.
No one would be interested as none of the authorities at home or abroad check WTD hours.
The only people interested in the WTD are none job jobsworths at large haulage firms.STOBRATS!
Fatboy slimslow:
Fatboy if you take the time to read Commercial Motor each week you will see just how many operators are hauled through the Courts.and Public Enquiries. The operators are fair game now as well as the drivers. Eddie’
i missed you last Tuesday Eddie at Sanquhar as I popped down the A76! Ten o’ clock ish
