Are Hauliers Doing Enough
Page 28
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to Prevent Theft ?
HAULIERS generally Should do more to prevent thefts of goods in transit, said speakers at the April meeting of the Industrial Transport Association's Leeds branch. The conditions of. carriage recommended by the Road Haulage Association were also criticized, as being too restrictive, particular complaint being made of the limitation of the haulier's liability to £200 per ton of goods carried. It was, however, agreed that there was need for more uniformity of conditions of carriage, as also of goods-in-transit insurance policies taken out by hauliers.
The discussion followed a paper contributed by Mr. J. F. Archbold, of Archbolds (Freightage), Ltd., Leeds, on conditions of carriage and goods-intransit insurance.,
Limited Liability.
Mr. Archbold said that the carrier would be liable for the negligent acts of his servants while they were acting within the scope of their authority, but he would not be liable for the unlawful interference of strangers over whom he had no control. If, for example, thieves broke into a vehicle while it was parked for the night, the carrier would not be liable for the loss of goods which they stole. That was strictly the legal position, but , the carrier might insure against such risks.
Alluding to variations in conditions of carriage by road haulage, Mr. Archbold recalled that during the war a large measure of standardization was enforced by the Ministry of War Transport's Road Haulage Organization. The R.H.O.'s conditions were far more drastic from the transport user's standpoint than anything previously experienced, with the result that many traders passed their long-distance traffic through recognized clearing houses, which, whilst handing it to the R.H.O. on the latter's conditions, had insurance cover which enabled them to give the trader a wider protection.
R.H.A. Conditions Criticized When the removal of RHO. control brought a reversion to the old position of widespread variation in conditions of carriage, the situation became even more difficult, because of the .road haulage industry's vast growth. When the R.H.A. sought to promote uniformity by recommending a set of conditions, these met with a good deal of criticism by traders' organizations, on the ground that they were too restrictive for peace-time conditions.
Mr. A. Gledhill, a transport rates consultant, opened the discussion by suggesting that hauliers were not doing enough to prevent thefts of goods in transit. • Traders had complained to him on this point, and.he agreed with thcm from his own observations on the• road. It was most necessary that properly controlled parking places, always under supervision, should be provided at places where lorry drivers stopped for meals or sleep.
A26 • Describing as " ridiculous " the £200 liability limit, Mr. Gledhill said that a lorry-load of Yorkshire cloth could easily be worth £3,000 or £4,000. At the same time, he thought that some consignors of goods classed as smalls were not paying enough for carriage. He considered that rates should be more graduated, in proportion to the value of the goods carried.
As to guarding against thefts, Mr. Archbold said that it was generally impracticable to have two men with every long-distance lorry. The R.H.A. had approached the police,. on the question of anti-theft measures, and had considered the idea of employing men, such as Automobile Association scouts, to guard lorries at parking places. A drawback to the latter idea was that these men would not have the necessary legal power to deal with cases of interference with vehicles, and therefore the plan had to be dropped.
Complaining that, in the case of smalls traffic, consignors themselves often failed to take sufficient precautions against pilferage, Mr. Archbold asserted that in many instances the goods were not adequately packed.
R.H.O. Started 1200 Limit Saying that from the carrier's point of view he totally disagreed with the condition of carriage limiting the haulier's liability to £200 per ton, Mr. Archbold recalled that this limitation was first introduced in the conditions of carriage which the Road Haulage Organization imposed, He had been against it from the beginning.
Mr. K. A. Lamb suggested that the figure of £200 per ton could serve as a line of demarcation. If the consignment were of greater value, the consignor could declare the excess, whereupon most carriers would be able to arrange full insurance cover at an agreed additional charge to the, consignor. NO PURCHASE TAX ON • "CREW CARS"
A S the result of pressure for the
removal of purchase tax from "crew cars," the exemption for buses and coaches has been replaced by one for vehicles constructed to carry not fewer than 12 passengers. Hitherto there have been difficulties on the question of whether or not particular vehicles were buses or coaches.
Driving mirrors for road vehicles will also no longer be chargeable with purchase tax.
APPLYING RAILHEAD . TECHNIQUE .
A CO-ORDINATION principle for 1-1 road and rail traffic was outlined by Mr. T. W. Royle, president of the Institute of Transport, at the recent annual dinner of the western section.
Large stations might be used as railheads for goods and road transport might carry to destinations within about 15 miles radius, avoiding unnecessary loading and, unloading, he said, The system might be extended to passenger, traffic, with buses taking passengers to outlying districts from railheads. Small stations could be closed and trains speeded up.
CHASSIS DESIGN I . QTUDENTS and. others interested in
the design of motor vehicles will find much of interest in "Automobile Chassis Design," by R. Dean-Averns. The contents include valuable data on vehicle performance, front axles and suspension, braking, frames, transmission and rear axles.
The book is well illustrated with over 160 diagrams and photographs. The publisher is Iliffe and Sons, Ltd., Dorset House, Stamford Street, London, S.E.l., and the price is 15s.
SPARE PARTS FOR EXPORT REFERRING to the difficulty of supplying spare parts in connection with export, mentioned in our issue for last week, Used Units, Ltd., Whittlefield, Burnley, Lanes, says that it is in a position to help operators of commercial vehicles in this respect, and will be glad to forward lists of spares available.