Tippermen fear car claims
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• Tipper operators say they are increasingly at risk from members of the car-driving public putting in fraudulent claims for alleged vehicle damage.
This is affecting insurance premiums and, in some cases, leading to court action, according to the tipper firms.
One Black Country operator is due to appear in court in March after a car driver claimed that two pieces of coal which fell from a tipper in September last year caused L900-worth of damage to her bumper.
The operator, who is pleading not guilty to a charge of having an insecure load, says it is easy to put the blame for car damage on to a transport firm.
"This is happening to tipper operators up and down the country," says the operator, who has faced two similar charges before.
The UK seems to be following the trend in America to bring legal action against individuals and companies, says transport lawyer Jonathan Lawton. "Certainly in my own profession we are no longer willing to give advice in case of being sued for issuing wrong advice," he adds.