Haulier disqualified after batteries fall off truck

Traffic Commissioner (TC) for Scotland Joan Aitken has revoked the O-licence of scrap car haulier Highland Car Crushers following an incident in which one of the firm's trucks shed part of its load of vehicle batteries, resulting in the closure of a major road.

In a written decision, following a June public inquiry in Inverness, the TC also disqualified the company, based in Black Isle, Ross-shire, and its directors for five years, from 1 September 2012.

In June 2011 vehicle batteries - which were filled with acid - fell from one of the firm's trucks onto the Smithton roundabout on the A96 Inverness to Elgin trunk road.

As a result of the incident the A96 was closed, while firemen wearing protective clothing and breathing apparatus loaded them onto another vehicle to be taken away.

A Vosa vehicle examiner found that during the journey a consignment of cables had settled in the trailer, which caused the straps to loosen.

When the vehicle was cornering on the roundabout the force acted on the load and resulted in the battery boxes moving and detaching from the vehicle. 

The examiner issued a prohibition against the vehicle, which was driven from the scene under police escort to the Vosa test station at Inverness for further examination.

A Vosa investigation identified issues with the company's vehicle maintenance and compliance with the dangerous goods regulations.

There had also been a failure to identify drivers' hours offences, failure to carry out appropriate driver licence checks and failure of the company to declare a director's conviction for drink driving.

A driver had also been arrested and convicted after being stopped in a company vehicle under the influence of alcohol.
Aitken ruled that the company directors had lost their repute, and that the firm's transport manager had lost his repute and professional competence.

The TC had suspended the firm’s O-licence for three weeks and urged it to improve safety two years ago, after police stopped one of its timber lorries on the A9 in December 2009. Traffic officers had feared “catastrophic consequences” if it continued pulling its unsecured load.

This followed a warning to directors about maintenance issues in 2007.

Aitken revoked the firm's O-licence for nine vehicles and nine trailers from 31 August 2012.