Dischar e for Schofield
Page 20
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• Wakefield haulier Eric Schofield & Sons and one of its drivers were given an absolute discharge after they admitted using a vehicle with dangerous parts and unsatisfactory brakes, when they appeared before Morely magistrates last week.
For the prosecution, it was said that an eight-wheeled tipper, loaded with stone chippings, had stopped on the M1 after the driver, Wilfred Baldwin, noticed something wrong with the handling. The offside third-axle wheel had become detached and was resting on the hub reduction gear. The stud locating holes, which were of a standard 26mm, had enlarged to as much as 49.5mm and the nuts had passed through. The wheel showed signs of breaking up because of the repeated movement of the studs in the holes. There were marks on the hub reduction gear housing running over half its length. The locating holes on the inner wheel had also elongated.
The offside wheels of the third axle could be rotated by hand when both the foot and hand brakes were applied, the court was told. Once adjusted, the wheels were incapable of movement when the brakes were applied.
Evidence was given by a director of the company that its vehicles were inspected every three weeks and that the vehi cle concerned had passed its annual test the month before. It was said that subsequent tests showed that though capable of adjustment, the brake actuator wound itself off with each application to the brakes.
Consultant engineer Ivan Ratcliffe said the circumstances of the wheel detachment were synonymous with what had become known as the "lost wheels mystery", and resulted from engineering problems rather than any lack of maintenance. It was possible for there to be a reaction across the axle which resulted in both the offside and nearside wheel problems.
For the defence, Gary Hodgson referred to the High Court decision in Hart v Bex, saying that an absolute discharge was appropriate where defendants were morally blameless.