Truck had 'lost wheel syndrome'
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Eastbourne truck driver Keith Kendrick was given an absolute discharge after Slough Magistrates were satisfied that a wheel detachment was a result of 'lost wheel syndrome".
KencInck had admitted using a vehicle in a dangerous condrtion. The owner of the vehicle, Swansea-based Andrew Shepherd, denied a similar offence.
Prosecuting, Tracey Powell said Kendrick had been driving the artic when the rear nearside wheel came off the semi-trailer, hitting and damaging a Fiat car.
Withdrawing the charge against Shepherd, Powell said she accepted defence arguments that Shepherd had not been "using" the vehicle at the time.
For Kendrick, Chris Butterfield argued that tt was a case of "lost wheel syndrome". He produced a report to the court from consultant engineer Stan Thomas, who had been involved in investigating more than 300 lost wheel incidents. The report described how a wheel could become detached even if maintenance is carried out correctly.
Kendrick said the night before the accident he had replaced the nearside rear wheels of the trailer using a torque wrench to the manufacturer's recommended pressure. The following day the wheel came off at a roundabout no more than 80 miles into his journey.
A letter was produced from the site manager of SITA, on whose contract the vehicle had been working, confirming that he had seen both Kendrick and Shepherd working on the wheels using a torque wrench.
The magistrates did not endorse Kendrick's driving licence, and made no order for costs.