www.truckandtrack.com Autumn 2023 Truck and Track 69 DANGEROUS GOODS be on board the vehicle and quantities. I can then determine if the load is in scope, what markings should be displayed and work from there. JD: Documentation. Quite often the failings with a movement begin in the office and are often not solely the driver’s / carrier’s fault. RS: What are the most common failings in relation to DG compliance? TH: Fire extinguishers! Lack of or incorrect. PPE is also a common issue which gets picked up on daily checks. JD: A classic shortcoming is out-of-date Instructions In Writing (IIW). We often come across PPE that is missing or damaged. Finally, fire extinguishers. Often drivers simply don’t check when doing their daily walk round…or they do and then just ignore the service dates. From the road dirt and cobwebs covering the external boxes it is more likely they simply don’t check. RS: If you find a non-compliance, what are the next steps? Do you look for more? TH: We always conduct a full check even if a noncompliance is found straight away. From then, it depends on what the issues are. If a prohibition is issued, then it’s the company’s DGSA who is called - and we ask for the previous DGSA audits. The company is notified along with HSE and the Traffic Commissioner’s Office. Multiple failings may result in the operator being summonsed to court and fines are unlimited in these cases. JD: We just continue to look, as often this will raise the risk category and move it from a delayed prohibition to an immediate one instead. RS: We often see roadside police checks being performed in designated areas. Are vehicles pulled in randomly or is there usually a reason to flag down the driver? TH: We get to know the responsible hauliers but will do random checks on them just to keep them on their toes. But it’s the undeclared Dangerous Goods that are the ones we want to identify, frequently found in vehicles without markings with untrained drivers. We use intelligence to target these vehicles as these are the most dangerous ones. JD: We welcome responsible hauliers and drivers speaking to us confidentially if there are poor working practices that risk the health and wellbeing of anyone working or using a road around a Transport Unit. Drivers and hauliers are encouraged to either contact their local DVSA office, or police Commercial Vehicle Unit, or finally reach out to the CDGPF. Non-compliant hauliers are often under-cutting the responsible hauliers and risk putting them out of business. As we all know, compliance costs money and investment, yet time and time again, when something does happen, we find that the level of investment has a major effect on whether it is a positive outcome or not. As Terry says, we do use intelligence to help keep everyone safe but sometimes it is just a police officer’s intuition. RS: If a driver, or their vehicle, does not comply with CDG Regulations, what enforcement action can you take, firstly at the roadside and then after the event? TH: It depends on the severity of the non-compliance. A seal broken off a fire extinguisher isn’t going to cause too much of an issue but, on the other hand, a company I dealt with a while ago had several issues and was fined almost £10,000 in court. JD: This starts off at simply advice, up to an immediate prohibition, formal interview under caution and then later being summonsed to attend Magistrates. Followed up by an invitation to a Public Inquiry with the Traffic Commissioner. RS: There is a significant number of vehicles on UK’s roads that are registered overseas and carrying Dangerous Goods. In your experience, are they more likely, or less likely, to be in compliance compared to their UK counterparts? TH: The non-UK vehicles do tend to have a higher level of compliance when they come to the UK in relation to DG but the CDGPF has been liaising with our European counterparts and they find very similar issues to those that we generally experience. JD: In my experience, they are better than our UK hauliers. Maybe it’s just being away from your home country that they try harder to pack everything…toothbrush, spare t-shirt, Crocs, Hi-viz vest, portable lighting apparatus etc. RS: Vehicles that are carrying DG that are not declared properly can significantly exacerbate the risks if they are involved in an incident. In your experience, how commonplace is the mis-declaration, or non-declaration of DG shipments - and what tools do you have to help target those who try to circumnavigate the system? TH: We know these vehicles put everyone at risk, especially the emergency services responding to incidents, which is why it’s important to find these. But we do need information on this and we’ll do our best to get these vehicles off the road and dealt with accordingly. A tell-tale sign* Attending a tanker rollover* Leaking Toxic Substance all over the bed of this trailer*
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