Security is no hours excuse
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• Drivers of high-security loads who break hours regulations to find a secure stopping place face prosecution if they knew in advance that the run could not be made in legal hours.
This was the ruling of the European Court last week when driver Alan Bird appealed against a Rochdale magistrate's decision to fine him £350 for driving for 5hr 15min without taking a 45min break.
Bird's employer claimed it could not afford to double man the cab and appealed to Bolton Crown Court, which in turn asked the European Court to rule on the meaning of an exemption in Article 12 of the EC regulations. But European Court judges said the exemption was intended to allow drivers to break hours rules for safety reasons.
It ruled against Bird's interpretation of Article 12 because both he and his employer knew beforehand that his journey from Dunfermline to Rochdale could not be completed within the permissible hours. The exemption should not apply where the driver and employer could have agreed to breach the regulations beforehand, the court found.
Bird's appeal was sponsored by his company, which cannot be named due to the nature of the loads it carries.