A. A valid test certificate is not required for a vehicle going to a pre-booked testing appointment or going to a place where defects found during a test are to be remedied.
In your scenario, you would not be able to drive the vehicle back to your premises via the public highway without a valid annual test certificate, so you would need to look at alternative ways to transport the vehicle back to your yard, for example by using a low-loader.
Best foot forward
Q. Can you confirm the minimum grade specification of safety footwear for a driver please? The question has been asked because drivers order their own boots and are unsure what standards the footwear should meet.
A. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) states that people involved in working with, or around vehicles should ‘always wear appropriate footwear which is in good condition and has good tread and ankle support’. Where a risk assessment shows that people need to wear a certain type of footwear, that footwear is considered as personal protective equipment, which should be provided and maintained free of charge to the worker.
Crane and able
Q. We have had a driver question whether he would be able to drive an 18-tonne vehicle fitted with a crane attachment, as he has not been trained to use the crane. The driver holds the required licence category, tachograph card and driver qualification card. He normally drives a drop-side truck, but his vehicle is off the road, and this is the only one we have available.
A. In short, yes, they can. If the driver has been made aware not to use the equipment or attempt to use the equipment, then they could drive the vehicle. When it comes to the drivers walkaround checks, the driver would still be expected to look at the equipment for signs of leaks or damage (from the stowed position) and any loose equipment and report any defects in the usual way.
ADR conundrum
Q. We have some of our drivers with their ADR certificates due to expire in three weeks’ time. I have booked them on an ADR course starting in three weeks. Can they continue to drive in the period between passing the course and receiving their certificates?
A. As your driver’s ADR certificates expire at the time of their course start date, they would not be allowed to drive a vehicle carrying ADR products until they are in possession of their ADR Certificate as per ADR 8.2.1.1.
8.2.1.1 Drivers of vehicles carrying dangerous goods shall hold a certificate issued by the competent authority stating that they have participated in a training course and passed an examination on the particular requirements that have to be met during the carriage of dangerous goods.
Maintaining other company’s vehicles
Q: Our operation has a maintenance unit on site and we have been approached by a company on the same industrial estate with a request for our mechanics to maintain their vehicles.
As the vehicles are not our assets, would we be able to do this? We have discussed the proposal with our insurers and have the relevant health and safety policies in place, but what liability would we have in respect of our operator licence?
A: There would be no issue with you maintaining the vehicles as the responsibility for ensuring the roadworthiness of the vehicle will remain with the operator of the vehicle.
Understandably, if the operator is involved in a public inquiry where it was determined that the maintenance was not as thorough as would be expected by the Traffic Commissioners, this may open the door for enforcement officers to look at your operation.
Ultimately, there would be no issues with a commercial arrangement such as this though, as long as the outcome is that all vehicles involved are maintained in a roadworthy state.
The size of it
Q: We are looking at the new Direct Vision Standards (DVS) requirements due to take effect in October 2024 and have seen that one of the requirements listed is an A3-sized sticker. Under the current DVS rules, we fitted stickers that were deemed to be compliant. Does this change mean that along with the new equipment, we will also need to replace the stickers as these will cover large parts of our livery?
A: Vehicles that meet the current requirements for warning signage on the vehicles will remain compliant. The question was asked of Transport for London (TfL), who have confirmed the below:
‘It is not a mandatory requirement, hence the guidance states 'should' rather than 'must' - we are keen to ensure warning signs are fixed in the right place on the vehicle and are of sufficient size to be clearly legible for other road users. However, this is only a recommendation and where the vehicle design would reasonably allow for it.
We understand that existing vehicles will have different sizes of signage installed and it will not be necessary to remove signage already installed. We will also let our permits team know that some applications will have different sizes of stickers and to look out for this once the scheme application goes live so that applications are not rejected on this basis.’
Classification of work
Q: One of our drivers is doing a journey that will run to approximately 13 hours, with the driving time being close to the limit on driving time. The driver leaves Site A, where the vehicle is based and operates from, but the trailer is destined to travel to Site B once they have completed their collections. Due to the driving time, the driver would usually use Site B for a night out and daily rest.
Due to staff holidays though, a replacement driver is in place this week, who lives a short distance from Site B and has asked if they can use the pool car to travel home and back. In which case, would the journey home and back to Site B in the morning be classed as other work or driving?
A: The driver, in this case, could be deemed to be working during these movements. This is because when we look at the commute to and from the place of work, it is different to their normal place of work. The GOV.UK guidance document, GV262, states the following:
‘Where a vehicle which is in scope of the EU rules is neither at the driver’s home nor at the employer’s operational centre where the driver is normally based, but is at a separate location, time spent travelling to or from that location to take charge of the vehicle, regardless of the mode of transport, cannot be counted as a rest or break…’
If they are the ones driving the vehicle, then it could be interpreted as other work. However, there are conditions where it may be considered as a Period of Availability (POA).
Tacho problemo
Q: One of our drivers tried to eject their digital tachograph card when a fault occurred and the unit malfunctioned. As a result, the drivers’ card is now stuck in the vehicle, and it is being taken to the garage this morning. Will the driver be able to drive a different vehicle using print-outs?
A: Unfortunately, the driver would not be able to drive on print-outs as the card is not lost, stolen or damaged.
The vehicle would need to be taken to your maintenance provider or tacho calibration centre to get the card removed.
If the card cannot be removed without damaging it, a letter written on headed paper would need to be produced by the tachograph centre to say that the card will be damaged upon trying to retrieve it from the vehicle unit. At this point the driver can then apply for a new driver card as it would be damaged.
Once they have applied and any fees paid, they would then be able to drive on print outs for 15 calendar days maximum or until the card arrives, whichever comes first.
