Wilcock loses three 1 • The vehicle authorisation on the
Page 20
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
licence held by Robert Wilcock Transport of Liverpool was cut from 10 to seven when it was renewed by North Western Licensing Authority Martin Albu.
Department of Transport vehicle examiner Roy Rowley gave evidence at a Manchester public inquiry that he had examined four of the six vehicles in possession. He had found a total of 34 defects, issuing two immediate prohibitions and two defect notices. The company's managing director, Robert Wilcock, had refused to sign a prohibition.
Wilcock maintained that the prohibited vehicles had not been in use, saying that the prohibition he refused to sign had been placed on a vehicle the company was about to inspect.
He disputed that the company's maintenance was inadequate, saying the vehicles would not have been taken out in that condition.
David Jones, the company's fitter, confirmed that the prohibited vehicles had been off the road. He said that the items on the vehicles given defect notices were repaired there and then. If the wagons went out and something went wrong he would go out and repair them. They relied entirely on the drivers to report defects. The vehicles were greased every six weeks and given a full service every three months.
Albu said that it was more than coincidental that four out of six vehicles were found to be defective. The firm had adopted a negative approach to maintenance, repairing defects as they occurred. There would be a further maintenance investigation before any additional vehicles were granted.