Sixth appearance at inquiry
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• A South Wales haulage company had its licence suspended for a week after making its sixth appearance at public inquiry because of concern over maintenance.
H Morgan & Sons (Haulage), of Ebbw Vale, was called before South Wales Traffic Commissioner John Mervyn Pugh after its maintenance records were found to be unsatisfactory and following the imposition of a prohibition in April for defective brakes and a defective load sensing valve.
For the company, Paul Carless said that during a recent unannounced visit by the vehicle examiner two vehicles were inspected but no faults were found.
Following the previous public inquiry eight vehicles and 25 trailers had been submitted for fresh annual tests and they had all passed first time. Former IX /1 vehicle examiner Mervyn Taylor had been asked to supervise the maintenance work regularly and all the units and trailers would be brake tested at the local test station.
Mervyn Pugh commented that director Roger Morgan's nephew, who had been in charge of the maintenance, had let his uncle down and had put the whole business in jeopardy. Morgan said that "blood was thicker than water", which was perhaps the wrong way to look at things. Suspending the company's 0licence with effect from 27 September, Mervyn Pugh said that advice had fallen on deaf ears and the company needed a good shake up.