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Not My Responsibility
The Law makes it clear that work equipment should be maintained in good repair and working order with vehicles being no exception. Employers holding an Operator Licence, will have a preventative maintenance programme in place which should be scheduled at least 6 months in advance with best practice being 12 months. Drivers should have a daily ‘first use’ checklist to complete whether paper or electronically recorded and should show both nil and identified defects. For commercial vehicles over 3.5T the ‘DVSA Guide to Maintaining Roadworthiness’ includes a comprehensive checklist and drivers must be allocated sufficient time in their work schedule to complete these at the start of their shift or when taking the vehicle over for the first day in the day. Defect sheets must show a clear line from identification to rectification and records kept for a minimum of 15 months.
Vehicles that fall out of scope of an Operator Licence and those less than 3.5T such as cars and vans must still be maintained by the drivers with checks often following a simpler format such as FLOWERED (Fuel, Lights, Oil, Water, Electrics, Rubber, Environment, Damage). Responsibility falls on the driver to complete those checks and in the event the vehicle is stopped the driver can face possible prosecution. For a company owned vehicle it is possible that the law would also look at the part played by supervisors, managers or directors with poor processes, record keeping and culture all be considered under Use, Cause, Permit legislative powers.
In December 2020 the importance of vehicle maintenance and responsibility was tested in a new way in Court. A driver, using someone else’s car drove dangerously, with no Insurance and over the drink drive limit resulting in a fatal crash of another motorist in 2018. He was sent to prison as a result. Importantly the passenger in the car was also the vehicle owner who had been issued with an advisory MOT notice for poor tyre tread several months earlier. The car was knowingly driven for a further 7,000 miles with the defect before being involved in the fatal crash. Using the little known ‘Accessories and Abettors Act 1861’, for which there were no sentencing guidelines the passenger was prosecuted for ‘aiding and abetting causing death by dangerous driving’. Whilst he was not the driver, he was found to be responsible and received a 2-year 6-month prison sentence alongside a driving ban of 4 years 3 months.
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