Haulier on trial after prohibitions
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HAULAGE company which accumulated a total of 36 vehicle rohibitions since 1976 was put on six months probation by the orth-western Licensing Authority Roy Hutchings at Manchester st week.
Formby haulier D. E. Appleton -laulage) Ltd holds a licence for 9 vehicles and 17 trailers in possession, with one vehicle Ind seven trailers to be acwired.
Vehicle examiner David Lees .aid that in 1976, 20 immediate Ind 16 delayed prohibitions had peen imposed after maintenince checks revealed that nspection records were so ranlom that no pattern of planned naintenance could be estab'shed.
The workshops were not well un, inspection pit facilities inidequater the one pit being poorly sited.
A vehicle presented for anlual test was in a potentially langerous condition, but the ompany claimed the vehicle lad been sold to a dealer with'Lit a test certificate and the lealer had used the company's act appointment to get a quick act. Managing director Douglas Appleton said he proposed to instal a second pit and vehicles were now inspected every four weeks. A fleet engineer had also been appointed, and accepted the situation was unsatisfactory in the past.
Mr Appleton said parts ostensibly being fitted to vehicles were sold to other operators, and a member of his staff had been prosecuted as a result.
There had also been problems in replacing an engineer who had left two years ago — the foreman fitter had taken over responsibility for maintenance, but that proved unsatisfactory.
For the company, John Backhouse said the situation had improved -.there were three immediate prohibitions in 1980 compared with six in 1979.
Prematurely terminating the expiry period of the licence to September, Mr Hutchings said that Appleton's record seemed appalling but he accepted there had been difficulties in staffing and he took account of the fact that some progress was being made.
He would ask for a further report from the vehicle examiner in September, and if that was unsatisfactory, he would have to consider if the company could manage to operate a sizeable