Haulier's Overweight Vehicle Suspended
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AFIER making a wrong declaration of weight in respect of one vehicle, Mr. Alec Dale, Highfield, Stud Farm, Leek. had a B-licensed vehicle suspended for four weeks by Mr. W. P. James, the West Midland Licensing Authority, at Hanley last Friday.
The Authority was told that on August 18, 1959, Mr. Dale had lodged a renewal application for a B licence and on his form had stated that the vehicle in question was a fiat weighing 2 tons 17 cwt. This statement had been incorrect, as the unit had been re-weighed by a local taxation officer and had been found to weigh 3 tons 19 cwt.
Evidence against Mr. Dale was given by Mr. W. E. Gidman, a West Midland traffic examiner, who stated that on June 23, last, he had weighed the vehicle and, without making allowance for fuel and water, it had been 4 tons 28 lb. He had cautioned Dale and told him that he had made a false statement regarding the weight. Dale said that he had filled in a blank form and all details had been inserted by the Road Haulage Association.
Mr. Gidman then visited the R.H.A. at Purslem, where be was assured that they had completed Mr. Dale's form and then returned it, asking him to sign it and forward it to the Licensing Authority. Dale interposed to say that he had never seen the form when it was completed.
Mr. P. M. Clewlow, a local taxation officer at Stafford, said that Mr. Dale had been informed that the weight on his application form had been wrong and he had replied that he had put the vehicle on coltract to John Howarth and Co., London, who were building a large reservoir in the Leek area. Various adjustments had been made and tipping gear had been fitted, all this resulting in the increase in weight. He had not intended to defraud and had meant to inform the Licensing Authority of the increased weight, but had just not "got round to it."
Mr. James said that the main point was that Mr. Dale had known that the vehicle was heavier than the weight specified on his application form in 1959. Even if he had acted from carelessness, he had seriously infringed the law, and if legal proceedings followed, a heavy penalty might ensue. The vehicle was to be suspended from Monday, October 17, to Sunday, November 11 LANCS AMBULANCE REPORT
THE ambulance service of Lancashire County Council is now entirely radio-controlled. The County Medical Officer of Health revealed this last week in a memorandum on the operation of the service during 1959. The mileage covered by the fleet last year was 4,469,4l9, almost double the 1949 total.
Dual-purpose eight-seater vehicles had proved their worth, and a further 12 such vehicles were ordered last year. Two new ambulance stations were brought into use.. The fleet totalled 398 vehicles, 255 of which were ambulances. The ambulances now had an average age of 9.4 years, stated the report.
Petrol consumption averaged 15.1 m.p.g. for ambulances, '14.4 m.p.g. for 12-seater dual-purpose Vehicles, and 21.6 mpg. for eight-seaters.
Watch It
LAsT year there were again a substantial number of accidents, including four fatalities, with portable electric hand tools. This was revealed last week in "Electrical Accidents and their Causes, 1959," an annual 'report by the Ministry of Labour on electrical accidents. The number of accidents reported during 1959 was 738, 34 of which were fatal. In addition there were 143 cases of welders' conjunctivitis.
Although the 1959 total exceeded the figures for the two previous years, stated the report, there had in fact been little variation over the past 10 years, despite the ever-increasing use of electrical apparatus. Investigation of causes of these accidents showed that nearly half resulted from ignorance and negligence. Other important causes were failure to earth equipment properly.
PETROL SALES PROBE
RETAIL sate of petrol under the solus system has been referred to the Monopolies Commission for investigation, the Board of Trade has announced. The President of the Board of Trade, Mr. Reginald Maudling, stated on July 28, last, that he proposed to refer the matter to the Commission.
Another, subject that is already before the Commission is electric equipment for mechanically propelled vehicles. It is not known when the Commission will report on this, a spokesman told The Commercial Motor this week.
AMERICAN REGISTRATIONS RISE
TOTAL ear and commercial vehicle registrations in the United States are expected to reach 73,868,000 this year, a 3.3 per cent, increase over last year.