High price of overloading
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• Permitting an unlicensed person to drive an LGV and overloading offences cost Greens Transport £1,480 when the company appeared before Macclesfield magistrates.
Ashton under Lyne-based Greens Transport pleaded guilty to two offences of causing or permitting an unlicensed person to drive and three offences of overloading.
Prosecuting for the DOT, John Heaton said a 16-tonne vehicle driven by Brian Doyle had been stopped in a weight check. The vehicle was weighed and found to be overloaded on the first axle by 1,380kg (22.62%); on the second axle by 1,460kg (14.25%); and by 2,840kg (17.47%) on its gross weight.
Inquiries showed no record of Brian Doyle holding an LGV licence. Greens Transport did not have a copy of his licence, although he had been employed for two years. When Doyle had been interviewed for the job he had said that his licence was away but produced LGV driving references. Later on the transport manager asked Doyle to produce his licence. Doyle had told him he had lost his licence.
Defending, Ian Whalley said Doyle had informed the company that he had an LGV driving licence and that he had considerable experience driving LGVs. He produced references which were checked.
The overloaded vehicle was working on a contract carrying holiday brochures. From past experience, eight pallets of holiday brochures could be loaded. The company was notified that the pallet format had changed but found out too late to stop the overloaded vehicle.
The company was fined £1,360 with £120 costs.