Broken-down vehicles(2)
Page 58
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Les Oldridge, T.Eng (CEI), MI, AM IRTE THE LAST article the types of every vehicles needed for ding different varieties of dised vehicles were discussed now the equipment and the
of the "wreckeritself Can looked at,
The danger on motorways d trunk roads of fast-moving ffic colliding with stationary licles which have been inlved in accidents or which ire broken down, is a very real a. Recovery vehicles and their iws working at the scene of ch incidents are extremely lnerable and everything lich can be done to make the -ride and its crew more cons:uous should be done.
Fluorescent and reflective int on the vehicle and special 'thing for the crew are helpful
d Regulation 64 of the Road hide Lighting Regulations 171 allows flashing amber tips to be used. These lamps ist flash between 60 and 120 les per minute, be fitted not ;s than five feet from the ound and on or as near as acticable to the longitudinal is of the vehicle. The rated 3ttage of the bulb used in the np must not exceed 36 watts. is lamp must only be used in nnection with and in the imediate vicinity of an cident or breakdown or while disabled vehicle is being Ned. It cannot be legally used the way to an emergency. Regulation 65 of the Lighting rgulations permits the use of iecial lamps for illuminating
e scene of an accident or eakdown. With minor excep)ns lamps which swivel or ow a white light to the rear of vehicle are forbidden but this gulation allows a spotlight to r fitted to a breakdown lorry oviding it is fitted not less than re feet from the ground. The rnp can only be used in the mediate vicinity of an ;cident or breakdown and hile the amber lamp discussed rove is in use. The person using the lamp must ensure that no other road user is dazzled by it but it may be swivelled or deflected while the vehicle is in motion in the immediate vicinity of the incident.
Schedule 2 (3) of the Goods Vehicle (Plating and Testing) Regulations 1971 exempts breakdown lorries from the plating and testing requirements. This does not mean, of course, that a wrecker can be used in an unroadworthy condition. All the provisions of the C and U Regulations concerning brakes, steering, tyres, silencers, horns, speedometers, etc, must be complied with. There appears to be no similar exemption from the MoT test for light vehicles used as recovery trucks.
If the breakdown vehicle is used with a trade licence, and more about trade licences in a subsequent article, an Operator's licence is not required (Schedule 1 (11) Goods Vehicles (Operator's Licences), Regulations 1977).
The type of driving licence required will depend on the weight of the breakdown lorry. A hgv driver's licence will be required if the "'permissible maximum weight'' of the vehicle exceeds 7.5 tonnes (7.38 tons). Normally this means the plated weight, but as breakdown lorries are not required to be plated, this will not be known.
We have to turn to the Goods Vehicles (Ascertainment of Maximum Gross Weights) Regulations 1976. Schedule 2 states that to obtain the maximum gross weight of a breakdown vehicle, the unladen weight must be multiplied by two. The class of hgv licence needed will depend on the number of wheels on the wrecker, a Class 2 for six and eight-wheelers and a Class 3 for a four wheeler.
There is a special concession for the driver of a breakdown lorry with an unladen weight of less than 10 tons which is owned by the holder of a public service vehicle licence. If the driver holds a psv driver's licence he may drive this lorry for recovering a psv even though he does not hold a hgv driver's licence.
The question is often asked as to whether a person sitting in a broken-down vehicle steering it while it is being towed needs a driving licence. In Wallace v Major (1946) 2 All ER 87 it was held that such a person is not a driver and, therefore, cannot be charged with dangerous driving. For some time it was thought that because of this decision, it was not necessary for a person merely steering a towed vehicle to hold a driver's licence. In R v MacDonagh (1974) RTR 372, however, the Lord Chief Justice said, referring to the Wallace v Major case; "We respectfully doubt whether the correct conclusion was reached on the facts of that case. The court seemed to have regarded the defendant merely as a steersman and to have ignored his responsibility for the use of the brake." One would think from this later case that where a vehicle is being towed by means of a rope or chain, so that a person steering it has also to apply the brakes, he should hold a driving licence, presumably to cover that type of vehicle.
A notice "On Tow" is often displayed on the rear of a broken-down vehicle being towed. There is no legal requirement for such a notice although it is a worthwhile safety measure as warning to overtaking traffic of the unusual length of the vehicles.
Strictly speaking, the number-plate on the rear of the vehicle being towed should be the same as the one displayed on the breakdown lorry. Regulation 22 of the Road Vehicles (Registration and Licensing) Regulations 1971 states that the owner of the vehicle must ensure "that there is displayed on the trailer the registration mark of the mechanically propelled vehicle, and that such registration mark is fixed to and displayed on the trailer as if the trailer was a vehicle of the same class and description as the mechanically propelled vehicle.
Where trade plates are used this is no problem: the rear plate can be removed from the breakdown vehicle and fixed to the rear of the disabled vehicle, bur if the breakdown vehicle iE licensed, this will probably mean carrying a spare number plate.
More about recovery opera• tions in the next article.