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Drivers are given community service for falsifying charts
Page 35
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Winding the clock back, pulling the fuse and using 'sacrificial' charts have landed three drivers with hefty community punishment orders.
THREE NORI'H Wales drivers caught falsifying tachograph charts have been given a total of 500 hours of community punishment orders with £2,250 costs.
At Liverpool Crown Court, David Atkinson pleaded guilty to 10 offences of falsification and asked for two more to he taken into account. Steven Harris pleaded guilty to 14 offences and asked for six to be taken into account. John George pleaded guilty toll offences and asked for 14 to be considered.
Prosecuting for VOS A, Mark Laprell said the three had falsified their charts to conceal daily rest offences and these offences could not have been committed without the knowledge of the employer.
The summonses had not been pursued until about a year after the investigation was complete, as VOSA had planned to interview their employer. However, he was seriously ill and could not be interviewed.
Perfect falsifications Atkinson had started by winding hack his tacho clock. Laprell told the court. But by mid-2003 he had discovered a more sophisticated way of falsifying the records, committing "perfect falsifications" by using a "sacrificial" chart to hide the full-scale deflection caused by interfering with the tacho's electrical circuit. George's offences had included pulling the tacit() fuse to conceal 158km of driving. He had also used a sacrificial chart —in fact, he had been a more sophisticated offender from an early stage.
For the three men. it was said they were carrying high-value loads from Ireland to the Continent,travelling in a convoy of three.They were only allowed to stop at secure truck stops and the first one on the route from North Wales was Rugby.
Serious offences There were tight schedules for ferry connections. Once on the Continent, the vehicles drove short distances but often had to queue to he unloaded.The drivers feared running out of time at the wrong site.
Atkinson was given a 100hr community punishment order; Harris a 180hr order: and George a 220hr order.They were each ordered to pay £750 costs.
Sentencing the three men, Judge Denis Clarke said these offences were so serious that normally only a prison sentence would be appropriate. However, he had taken into account the relative age of the offences and the fact they could not have been committed without the knowledge and tacit consent of their employer. •