Defective tyre passed test
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• A truck with a defective tyre passed its annual test without the tyre being changed, a Leeds disciplinary inquiry heard. The truck W05 operated by Hartford Holdings, trading as Trojan Plastics of Milnbridge, Huddersfield. Vehicle examiner Melvyn Lindsay told North Eastern Traffic Commissioner Keith Waterworth that he had inspected a vehicle and trailer in February, issuing an immediate prohibition to the vehicle for a defective tyre.
The tyre had been noted on the previous inspection record dated 26 October 1995, some 14 weeks before his inspection. Inspections were said to be carried out every eight weeks by a commercial garage.
Production manager Robert Mosley said there was no excuse for the vehicle missing an inspection—it had been human error on his part. One reason for the lapse was that the vehicle was only being used as a back-up vehicle. The company had doubled its turnover over the past two years which had meant an increased workload for everyone. That had now been addressed and two new people had been appointed to the management team. Since the vehicle examiner's visit a wallchart had been put up showing when inspections were due.
Waterworth said it was astonishing that the commercial garage had not suggested changing the tyre. Mosley told him the company had failed to pick it up as the vehicle had passed its annual test the following day, 27 October.
This was a small family business, said Mosley, and a lot of things were done by word of mouth. Waterworth replied that he was going to insist on a written drivers' defect reporting System.
The company's licence authorises three vehicles and one trailer. Suspending one vehicle for two weeks, Waierworth said it had a his tory of failing to keep its vehicles in tip-top condition and disciplinary action was called for as there had been insufficient improvement since a warning letter in June 1995.