FUTURE LEGISLATION Forthcoming changes in the law brought to you
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by the FreightTransport Association AIIM Changes to RIDDOR The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has issued proposed changes to RIDDOR, expected to take effect from 1 October. These are intended to simplify the mandatory reporting of workplace injuries for businesses. The main changes are: • the classification of "major injuries" to workers replaced with a shorter list of "specified injuries"; • the existing schedule detailing 47 types of industrial disease to be replaced with eight categories of reportable workrelated illness;
• fewer types of "dangerous occurrence" will require reporting. EC Whole Vehicle Type Approval
There are just two stages of the implementation of the EC Whole Vehicle Type Approval scheme left. Incorporated from 29 October this year will be all existing type trailers built in multi stages with existing types medium and heavy CVs (over 3.5-tonne GVW) coming in scope from 31 October 2014. Introduction of real total mass for certain driving tests
The Driving Standards Agency is introducing a real total mass requirement for vehicles used for driving tests from 15 November. The changes mean that vehicles must carry a minimum weight in order to be used for the driving test, for example a rigid vehicle for category C licence will require a minimum of 5 tonnes. These changes only apply to vehicles used in England, Wales and Scotland. The new rules will affect vehicles in categories C and C+E, and also vehicle trailers used in the categories B+E, C1+E, D1+E and D+E. DVLA Transformation
From June, post offices have been able to carry out many additional services previously available from the DVLA local offices. These include taxing vehicles without a reminder, the ability to tax LGVs with a Reduced Pollution Certificate (RPC) and the ability to produce duplicate tax discs (at 400 branches). HGV Road User Levy This will be introduced on 1 April 2014 and apply to all LGVs weighing or exceeding 12 tonnes being used on UK roads. It will cover both UK and non-UK-registered vehicles. UK-registered vehicles will pay the levy at the same time as the VED. Due to an upcoming reduction on VED for 94%
of UK LGVs, this will mean a no-cost impact. Non-UK-registered vehicles will have to pay the levy prior to entering the UK with payment available to cover a single day, a week, a month or a year. There will be a fixed penalty of £300 for non-payment or underpayment of the charge.
Functional merger of Vosa and DSA The Department for Transport (DfT) has announced that Vosa and the Driving Standards Agency (DSA) will be merged and put under the control of a single chief executive: Alastair Peoples, current chief executive at Vosa. The initial announcement was made in June this year and it is understood that the two organisations will continue in their current form under Peoples, with a transitional board for at least the next 12 months, with the full merger being completed in the summer of 2014. Introduction of Euro-6
The introduction of Euro-6 will apply from January 2014 for new registrations. An RPC is available for Euro-6, but the reduced VED will only be available until December 2016 for holders of valid certificates.