First corrosive substances prosecution
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• Charged at Grimsby Borough magistrates' court in what was stated to be the first prosecution in the country of its kind under the Corrosive Substances (Conveyance by Road) Regulations, Clarkson (Transport) Ltd, of Rotherham, had to answer charges of being owners of a motor vehicle used for the conveyance of hydrofluoric acid and failing to provide the person. employed in such conveyance with a copy of the necessary regulations and put them in a position where they could be read; failing to carry a suitable and efficient fire extinguisher; and failing to display warning notices at the front and rear of the vehicle.
Pleas of guilty were entered on behalf of the company and a fine of LIO on each charge was imposed.
The prosecution alleged that the driver had little idea of what he was carrying. His vehicle was loaded with 40 drums of hydrofluoric acid being carried from Rotherham to Grimsby to be shipped to Norway.
The company's managing director, Mr Dennis Butterwick, told the court that his company did not normally carry corrosive substances and he claimed that this load had been accepted without its nature being known.
The chairman of the bench said they were being lenient because the regulations were new.