Q When one of our lorries was stopped by the

20th September 1974, Page 211

20th September 1974

Page 211

Page 211, 20th September 1974 — Q When one of our lorries was stopped by the

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police it was discovered that the driver had not made out his log sheet for the day and that the vehicle did not have its unladen weight painted on the side. We have been told, that we will be prosecuted for the log sheet offence (causing or permitting) and warned about the absence of unladen weight.

Surely we cannot be expected to check each log sheet during the day, and as far as the weight is concerned, the vehicle was only one month old and its unladen weight is 2 tons 18 cwt. The local DoE testing station has told us that if it is under 3 tons unladen it does not need a painted unladen weight, but our_ solicitor says that this applies only if it_is under 21/2 tons. Which is correct.

A Regulation 74 at the Motor Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1973 states that the owner of a locomotive, motor tractor or heavy motor car shall cause the unladen weight of the vehicle to be painted or otherwise plainly marked upon some conspicuous place on the left or nearside of the vehicle. This does not apply to a heavy motor car not registered under the Roads Act 1920 or the Vehicles (Excise) Acts of 1949, 1962 or 1971.

However, at 2 tons 18cwt unladen your vehicle is none of these classes of vehicle. It is a motor car as defined in section 190(2) (b) of the Road Traffic Act 1972. This states that in this Act (and by reference to Regulation 3(1) of the C and U Regs, in this as well) a motor car means a mechanically propelled vehicle which is constructed or adapted for use for the conveyance of goods or burden of any description and the weight of which unladen does not exceed 3 tons.

Your solicitor seems to have become involved with Sub-section (c) which provides for vehicles not already included in (a) and (b) and which specifies 21/2 tons as the relevant unladen weight.

So far as the log sheet offence is concerned, Section 98(4) of the Transport Act 1968 states that "... an employer of an employee-driver shall not be liable to be convicted under this sub-section by reason of contravening any such regulation whereby he is required to cause any records to be kept if he proves to the court that he has given proper instructions to his employees with respect to the keeping of records and has from time to time taken reasonable steps to secure that those instructions are being carried out."