Convicted haulier's 0-licence reprieve
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• A haulier with several convictions for vehicle defects escaped action against his operator's licence after West Midland Traffic Commissioner David Dixon decided the offences had occurred before a previous inquiry and were no longer relevant.
Martin Jeffrey, of Leek, Staffordshire, who trades as M R J Transport Services, had had his licence curtailed from four vehicles and three trailers to two vehicles and two trailers at a public inquiry in October 1997.
But in January this year he was convicted by Kendal magistrates of three offences of using a tractor with defective brakes, using a trailer in a dangerous condition, failing to maintain a trailer and using a vehicle without a test certificate. He was fined a total of £900 and ordered to pay 4:140 costs.
Jeffrey said the convictions had arisen after an artic was stopped in a check at Shan in April 1997. l'he driver had not reported any defects. involving the tractor brakes had arisen because a brake on the drive axle had been backed off slightly more than the other. The middle axle was most in danger of locking up and it had been policy to back off the brakes on that axle slightly.
The trailer offences had resulted from a brake cam going over the drum. The brakes had been adjusted the week before and were in order then.
'Me lack of a test certificate was an oversight, as apparently the vehicle had missed one test.
The traffic commissioner said the offences were significant and serious. But, as they had been committed before the last public inquiry, and there had been no misdemeanours since, he would take no action.