Heavy fines for drivers who falsified records
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HEAVY FINES were inflicted upon three lorry drivers who were convicted of falsifying their drivers' records by Chorley, Lancashire, magistrates last week. In total the defendants were ordered to pay fines of £240, with £60 costs, in respect of six offences.
The first two drivers, Anthony Kitching, of Kingsway, Euxton, near Chorley, and Brian Monkhouse, of Dickens Road, Coppull, were both employed by Leonard Fairdough Ltd, of Adlington. They were both charged with making a false entry in a drivers' record on April 18 and again on April 19.
For the prosecution, Mr J. S. Lawton, said at the time the offences were committed both defendants were driving separate vehicles between Adlington and Edinburgh. The records of both men showed they finished work on the return journey at Carlisle at 1830 hours on April 18. Their records for April 19 showed they had commenced work at Carlisle at 06.30 hours An examination of the records did not reveal that any offence had been committed. However, a DoE examiner observed both vehicles unattended in a lay-by at Fow lers Hill, near Garstang, at 20.30 hours on April 18, Both drivers had been paid subsistence expenses for the night of April 18.
When questioned, Mr Monkhouse had said he had travelled farther down the road from Edinburgh than he had anticipated he would in the time.
As he had already written Carlisle into his record he did not want to alter it.
Mr Kitching had said his record was correct but he had finished work at Garstang and not Carlisle, and he had thumbed a lift home from Garstang.
In evidence, both drivers maintained they had not been "fiddling" financially. They said they would have been automatically paid subsistence for April 18 and for a full morning's work on April 19 in any event.
The magistrates fined each driver a total of £100, and ordered them to pay £20 costs each.
The third driver, Robert Beare, of Beaumont Place, Lancaster, was fined £80 on two charges of making a false entry, and ordered to pay £20 costs.
Mr Lawton said on January 21 the defendant's records showed he had finished work at Keele, Staffordshire, at 18.30 hours and that he commenced work at Keele at 07.00 hours the next morning. However, his vehicle was observed by a police constable at Charnock Richard, northbound on M6, at 19.43 hours on January 21.
Pleading guilty, Mr Beare said for domestic reasons he had been concerned to get home that night. He had been employed by Containerway and Roadferry Services Ltd, but had been asked to resign as a result of the offences. It was that company's policy to offer drivers convicted of such offences the alternative of resigning or being dismissed. If a driver resigned, he was allowed to re-apply for his job six months later, so in effect the company was giving him a six-month suspension.