tyler4164:
Before i start i would like to say i work from an outbase in severn beach near avonmouth & the main r.d.c is in Birmingham.
Anyway i start work at 05.15 every morning delivering on a set route to somerset & south wales, a total of 8 drops every day. Normaly when i arrive the night driver has arrived back from Birmingham in plenty of time for me to start work. Today 7/5/09 i arrive to find no truck on site so i ring the main r.d.c & was told about an accident on the m5 & that the night driver would be late back. At 06.20 he arrives back at the yard & as he’s reversing i notice theres no rear numberplate on the trailer. When i asked the driver where it was he said it was on there when he left Birmingham & off he went. I rang the r.d.c to inform them he was back & then told them i couldn’t leave as i had no rear numberplate. They told me to make one using cardboard. I said (1) no because it was illegal & (2) as it was raining it would just fall apart anyway. The reply was…so your refusing to take the truck out. I said yes but only because it’s not 100% legal.
Anyway to cut a long story short i got the impression they thought i was being over the top & causing them grief when there was no need to. They had to make some calls & i was told to get my ■■■ to a place in avonmouth to get a new plate. Only problem was it didn’t open untill 08.00. They decided to call in another company to take some drops off me so by the time i had taken the drops off & got the plate i didn’t leave untill 10.00. All in all not a good start.
Couple of questions
1…what would you have done?
2…Was i right or wrong■■?
3…does anyone know what exactly the law says on driving with a made up plate etc etc
Thanks for any replies
Take no notice of some of these nutters !!
1…took a different unit.
2…right.
3…you can’t drive on a made up cardboard plate if thats what you mean.
When you get them asking you dumb questions like “are you refusing to drive it”, just say “no i’ll drive it”, fill out a defect report that you have a missing number plate, ask them to sign it and you’ll be on your way as soon as they do. Its alright them going on about ‘can do’ attitudes, that works both ways. A good gaffer would either sort it for you or ask you to make do for now and he’ll carry the can if you’re stopped. Just another point that no one has picked up on yet, and that is if you are stopped for it, then it actually goes as a black mark against the operator of the vehicle.
My view maybe skewed as apart from there is no way i’m leaving myself open to pay a fine , i also have to drive out past a check point every day 
Then again there are lots of other drivers who are not like me and they do have a ‘can do’ attitude. I see them sitting in the checkpoint at switch island when i head out in the morning And when i return about midday for my second job they are still sitting there, still with the same ‘can do’ attitude. Meanwhile, i’m actually out doing it !!
i think you was wrong and although you was legally right all your bosses are now thinking you dont want to do the job . i regularly run in europe with a french trailer and as there is no holder i dont bother trying and have never had it questioned even when being pulled by vosa
How can somebody be wrong for not wanting to break the law…
chester:
How can somebody be wrong for not wanting to break the law…
No 
But there’s “breaking the law” and “BREAKING THE LAW”
You’ve got to have a wee bit of common sense. 
switchlogic:
I suppose you were technically right, but in my opinion a bit over the top. There seems very little can do attitude amongst drivers these days and if I was in the office when you rang I’d have probably just laughed at you.
Well at the end of the day im shocked at your attitude. I’ve been working on this contract sine july 08 & since then i havn’t had one day off sick or been late once. I always put 100% into my job so who are you to tell me i’m nothing but a jobsworth. As a proffesional driver its all about leading by example. Us proffessional drivers are supposed to set an example to other road users such as car drivers etc. If a car driver wishes to drive around with a light out it doesnt mean we as proffesionals have to do the same. I paid over £2500 for my class 1 & 2 & if theres anything wrong with the vehicle then i won’t drive it untill its sorted. If you are prepared to drive a vehicle in an un roadworthy condition then your the jobsworth in my opinion. How the hell do you warrent sending a driver home just for sticking to the letter of the law.
At the end of the day i wasn,t refusing to do my drops, they all got done all beit abit late & i had a longer day but the job got done. I even used my own car to go & pick up the new plate so as far as i can see i made all the effort i needed to do.
Why are you so worried about causing abit of fuss or upsetting the boss in order to stay legal, any boss who expects a driver to drive an unroadworthy truck aint worth worrying about. Its my licence at the end of the day!!!
& to add to it all the staff at my drops said i done the right thing.
I don’t care how many of you guys think i was over the top its what i think that matters. If it aint legal i don’t drive it simple as!!
switchlogic:
I suppose you were technically right, but in my opinion a bit over the top. There seems very little can do attitude amongst drivers these days and if I was in the office when you rang I’d have probably just laughed at you.
Yeah little can do attitude amongst drivers such as yourself you mean… can’t be bothered to spend time fixing a fault incase it inconveniences your day or upsets the boss. I done what needed to be done & the job got done & best of all i didn’t get into trouble.
mrpj:
ajt:
Could you not have arranged to bob into a Halfords on route? They make up plates in a few mins
I thought you needed the vehicles log book to do this?
You do, i work out of wrings transport yard in severn beach so they faxed a copy of the logbook through which is how i got the new plate
Steve-o:
Sure it’s not legal but now all your bosses think you’re a right prick. I wouldn’t be suprised if you got taken off your cushey run and put on a god awful one
There are 3 drivers who work from the outbase who cover the southwest. We all cover roughly the same kms in a day. 1 driver has 5 drops 1 has 7 & i have 9 drops all together but only deliver to 8 as 2 lots are dropped at 1 place. Out of all of the runs mine is the worst so if they put me on another run i’d benifet from it
tyler4164:
mrpj:
ajt:
Could you not have arranged to bob into a Halfords on route? They make up plates in a few mins
I thought you needed the vehicles log book to do this?
You do, i work out of wrings transport yard in severn beach so they faxed a copy of the logbook through which is how i got the new plate
Ah !! Wrings !! You should of said sooner
There is a driver who posts here and elsewhere, and one day he turned up for work at Wrings. They thought he still had alcohol in his system when he turned up for work, and as every good employer should do they contacted the police . The police came and breathalysed him, and sure enough Wrings where right, the driver was over the limit from the night before. It was lucky for the general public that he killed no one while he was over the limit, and moreso lucky for Wrings as he was driving a van that they sent him out in when thay suspected he was over the limit and he was pulled over !! Thats what you call a boss with a ‘can do’ attitude who cares for the well being of the general public and his employees.
If you’d of said it was Wrings in the first place i’d of said don’t move the truck out the yard as they’ll (W)ring the cops on ya !!!
I work for a company who randomly do breath test’s, no-one has been caught out yet, but if they do then the driver is not tasked for that day, and is offered help for alcohol use.
chester:
I work for a company who randomly do breath test’s, no-one has been caught out yet, but if they do then the driver is not tasked for that day, and is offered help for alcohol use.
We have something similar mate. We have number plate checks, and if your found without one then its a day in the classrooom with a yellow square plate and a black marker pen
tyler4164:
switchlogic:
I suppose you were technically right, but in my opinion a bit over the top. There seems very little can do attitude amongst drivers these days and if I was in the office when you rang I’d have probably just laughed at you.
Well at the end of the day im shocked at your attitude. I’ve been working on this contract sine july 08 & since then i havn’t had one day off sick or been late once. I always put 100% into my job so who are you to tell me i’m nothing but a jobsworth. As a proffesional driver its all about leading by example. Us proffessional drivers are supposed to set an example to other road users such as car drivers etc. If a car driver wishes to drive around with a light out it doesnt mean we as proffesionals have to do the same. I paid over £2500 for my class 1 & 2 & if theres anything wrong with the vehicle then i won’t drive it untill its sorted. If you are prepared to drive a vehicle in an un roadworthy condition then your the jobsworth in my opinion. How the hell do you warrent sending a driver home just for sticking to the letter of the law.
At the end of the day i wasn,t refusing to do my drops, they all got done all beit abit late & i had a longer day but the job got done. I even used my own car to go & pick up the new plate so as far as i can see i made all the effort i needed to do.
Why are you so worried about causing abit of fuss or upsetting the boss in order to stay legal, any boss who expects a driver to drive an unroadworthy truck aint worth worrying about. Its my licence at the end of the day!!!
& to add to it all the staff at my drops said i done the right thing.
I don’t care how many of you guys think i was over the top its what i think that matters. If it aint legal i don’t drive it simple as!!
Good god man, you asked a question, I answered it, now your having a hissy fit because I didn’t give the answer you wanted. Why do people like you post on here with these ‘was I right or wrong’ or ‘did I do the right thing’ style questions when they are so certain they did the right thing anyway and then get all arsey when someone disagrees with them. I don’t post daft questions because I’m happy with the way I do things and that’s good enough for me.
Just get over yourself and do the job the way you want, then we’ll all be happy!
Goodnight all.
A couple of years ago I would have just run without a plate. Nowadays however the plod seem to be pulling alot of trucks without rear plates. In this case I think I would have removed the units rear plate and used that. If that was impossible I would have got an agreement that the company would pay the fine should I get stopped.
If you were pulled for such an offence could you use pressure from your employer as a valid defense?.. maybe but probably not!
Mike-C:
chester:
I work for a company who randomly do breath test’s, no-one has been caught out yet, but if they do then the driver is not tasked for that day, and is offered help for alcohol use.
We have something similar mate. We have number plate checks, and if your found without one then its a day in the classrooom with a yellow square plate and a black marker pen
yes maybe, but what i stated was a fact, ie true… Iam not saying iam whiter than white, because i will do anything for a early knock off for me to have a life. The only thing iam finding hard to understand that a lot of drivers are saying the original poster was wrong in what he did. he kept within the law how can he be wrong,
I find it surprising more firms dont have at least a basic tool kit in there trucks and a bulb kit and a few fuses i have that and spare lenses and suzies and other odds and ends. Im no fitter but these kind of jobs are not quantam physics
Tyler, you started a thread with the title “Was I wrong or right”. You are now bad mouthing the ones who think you were over the top. WTF?
Bet your boss was jumping for joy when he had to “call in another company to take some drops off”. 
What makes me laugh is the amount of “drivers” on here trying to equate a number plate made out of card (not missing) with faulty tyres, blown headlamps and so on. 
Chester, there is breaking the law & breaking the law. Anyone who disagrees is implying that they never break the speed limit by just one mile per hour.
Answers to Tyler’s original post:
-
Made one out of cardboard. VOSA are the authorities, not the devil incarnate and IMO would more often than not appreciate a bit of “can-do”.
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Right, but it does make you appear a bit like the schoolkid who sees a ■■■■■ mag being passed around class and tells the teacher. 
-
The law states, “All vehicles manufactured after 1.1.1973 must display number plates of reflex-reflecting material, white at the front and yellow at the rear and the characters must be black.” There is no mention about plates made of cardboard.
He who is without sin… 
Dazza:
- Made one out of cardboard. VOSA are the authorities, not the devil incarnate and IMO would more often than not appreciate a bit of “can-do”.
This was exactly the view of a VOSA man who spoke to me at Strensham. My plate had come off between Exeter and there (spring on retaining bar had broken). He saw me fixing a cardboard number and had no problem with a ‘get me home solution’. It was clear to him that I was not trying to avoid being identified and took my word that I would sort it when I got back.
Dazza:
Tyler, you started a thread with the title “Was I wrong or right”. You are now bad mouthing the ones who think you were over the top. WTF?
Bet your boss was jumping for joy when he had to “call in another company to take some drops off”.
What makes me laugh is the amount of “drivers” on here trying to equate a number plate made out of card (not missing) with faulty tyres, blown headlamps and so on.
Chester, there is breaking the law & breaking the law. Anyone who disagrees is implying that they never break the speed limit by just one mile per hour.
Answers to Tyler’s original post:
-
Made one out of cardboard. VOSA are the authorities, not the devil incarnate and IMO would more often than not appreciate a bit of “can-do”.
-
Right, but it does make you appear a bit like the schoolkid who sees a ■■■■■ mag being passed around class and tells the teacher.
-
The law states, “All vehicles manufactured after 1.1.1973 must display number plates of reflex-reflecting material, white at the front and yellow at the rear and the characters must be black.” There is no mention about plates made of cardboard.
He who is without sin…
Oh my good god, we’re in agreement! You speak perfect sense here. Good man
