Broken speed limiter earns £250 fine
Page 17
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
Wrexham operator Dennis Lee has been fined £250 with £85 costs in one of the first prosecutions following the launch of the Vehicle inspectorate's speed limiter simulation test equipment.
Liverpool city magistrates heard that in May a eight-logger carrying offal was stopped in a check at the M57/M58 interchange in Liverpool. Vehicles carrying animal waste that was unfit for human consumption were exempt from the EC tachograph regulations. Driver Andrew Vacher therefore produced a written record in a log book.
As there was no tachograph chart the vehicle examiner was unable to check if the speed limiter was functioning properly. The vehicle was equipped with a calibrated tachograph and Inside the head was a test point socket which allowed the specialist test equipment to be connected. This was done and it showed that the speed limiter was inoperative.
An examination of the limiter revealed that its operating cable was broken—the fractured ends were rusted and frayed. The operating cable had also been disconnected from the fuel pump governor lever.