Keep defects on the record
Page 49
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
To get an Operator's Licence every would-be haulier must make a statement of intent, promising the Licensing Authority that he will make proper arrangements to ensure that drivers report defects and that these reports
are handled properly. However, the LAs interpret this requirement in different ways. Some expect no more than a plain duplicate book for the driver to make a note of a defect, to be torn out and handed to the fitter. Other LAs stick rigidly to the requirements of the *Guide to Maintaining Roadworthiness, which suggests a nil defect reporting system—a daily report on the condition of the vehicle.
Many operators would question the need for this when there is no defect, but the effectiveness of any system should be measured by the fact that vehicles are always in a roadworthy condition. The operator's system must ensure that this happens at all times, and that he complies with the statements of intent.
Why have a nil defect reporting system? Operators must remember that a driver is an integral part of a maintenance system. If a GV9 is imposed for a defective tyre, it will be marked "failure of the maintenance system". The operator may say it was all right on the preventative inspection and blame the driver for failing to spot it. That may well be the case—but as the driver is part of the operator's maintenance system, that system has still failed.
The operator must therefore be able to prove to the enforcement authorities, the Vehicle Inspectorate, the police, the LA and the courts, that his vehicles are checked on a daily basis. He has to prove that daily checks are being carried out. He has to prove that his drivers know how to carry out a daily inspection And he has to prove that they know what to look For. After all, he is only obliged to carry out a visual inspection as part of his daily check.Each driver must have a check list that he completes every day to confirm that he has checked his vehicle before it goes on the road. He must also carry out checks during its use during that day and that reoort must be kept in the vehicle *file.
You can have the best workshops in the world staffed by the best fitters but if a driver doesn't make his daily checks properly and a prohibition is imposed, a public inquiry could follow. If repeated, this problem could lead to licence revocation, A daily checklist completed by the driver is essential, If a court is shown reports for the week leading up to the discovery of a defective tyre, it might well accept that the defect only developed on that day it was spotted by the authorities.
But say a haulier only has a defect reporting system, and does not keep defect reports for six weeks. If one of his vehicles is stopped in a check and found to have a defective stoplight, which results in an immediate prohibition, the court is unlikely to believe that drivers are carrying out daily defect checks.
It is also unlikely to believe that no defects have occurred in that six-week period and will conclude that no checks had been made. If an operator contracts out his maintenance, rs a nil defect system will not only ensure that his vehicles are maintained in a roadworthy condition; it can also cut costs. For example, if a driver's defect report reveals tyre damage following a preventative maintenance check by an outside contractor, and if that preventative maintenance sheet indicates that the tyre was fitted during the preventative maintenance check, the operator has good reason to question if a new tyre was really fitted. Equally, if a preventative maintenance check Finds tyre defects, but the driver has filled in a nil defect sheet the previous day, the operator is entitled to question if that driver actually carried out a check.lt must be remembered that if a defect is found, there must be evidence to show that it has been repaired and that must be endorsed on the form.
With this in mind Ford &
Warren and Commercial Motor have devised a form covering daily checks (above), the reporting of defects and the rectification of those defects. The virtues of a nil defect reporting system are endless: this review has only touched on some of the system's benefits to hauliers.
Remember: if there is a maintenance problem or a maintenance related accident, the operator's story is unlikely to be believed unless he can prove the steps he takes to ensure his vehicles are roadworthy at all times.
by Gary Hodgson
'The Guide to Maintaining Roadworthiness is published by the Department of Transport and available from testing stations, Traffic Area offices and HMSO bookshops.