Overload charges dropped by the VI
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by Miles Brignall IN The Vehicle Inspectorate has dropped court cases against operators running overweight vehicles because of a "ministerial directive" that it now denies exists.
The situation came to light when a lawyer acting for the VI told a magistrates court he had been instructed to drop a case because of a Ministerial directive. The directive said that operators caught running trucks less than two tonnes or 10% over their permitted train weight should not be prosecuted, the lawyer said.
But the VI now says the directive does not exist, even though this is not the only time prosecutions have been dropped for this reason.
Commercial Motor has a copy of a letter sent out by the VI's Prosecution and Legal Services to a magistrate's clerk concerning the case of an operator who was charged with running overloaded. It says that due to a change in prosecution policy, as a result of the ministerial directive, the VI will not be offering any evidence against him.
The solicitor who represented the haulier in this case says he was told by a prosecuting solicitor that the VI was no longer going to pursue charges against hauliers if they were found to be less than 10% or two tonnes over train weight. He was told the directive was applied on 30 September 1996, but did not affect axle overloads.
The operator concerned says that on the same day his case was dropped, other hauliers were being charged who had been caught in similar circumstances with similar overloads—and their cases were not dropped, If a ministerial decision has been taken it would effectively mean that hauliers could operate at up to 40 tonnes— the DOT is currently consulting the industry about making this the maximum gross vehicle weight.
But the VI says the letter was sent out in error and no ministerial decision has been made. "The error has been pointed out to the relevant person and no further letters on this subject will be sent," it says. The VI says it is still targeting its enforcement, and hauliers with poor records will continue to come under particular scrutiny.