Tag Archives: DVSA
Smoking in Trucks: What the Law Says
HGV operators face fixed penalties for failing to stamp down on smoking. The law on smoking in commercial vehicles is very detailed, yet surprisingly poorly understood. We take a quick look at 3 of the main smoking-related criminal offences that all operators and drivers must be aware of: […]
AdBlue Cheats Face Loss of Operator’s Licence
What is Adblue? You may well have seen containers of Adblue at service stations and wondered what they were for. When a diesel engine burns diesel, a number of polluting compounds and chemicals are emitted out of the exhaust pipe and into the atmosphere. Nitrogen Oxide and Nitrogen Dioxide are […]
The Dangers of Not Carrying Out Regular Driver Licence Checks
Be honest – how often do you check the licences of your drivers for any endorsements? Once every 6 months? Once a year? Never? Whether you are a goods or PSV operator, if the answer to any of the above is “yes”, you are running a very big risk. […]
School Minibuses & Section 19 Permits – Am I Legal?
Operating school minibuses under a Section 19 Permit can be a heavy responsibility. Unless you have a background in the transport industry, it is unlikely that you will have much experience in navigating the often complex legal regulations that govern the operation of school minibuses. When the safety of […]
What Type of PSV Licence do I Need?
Every year hundreds of Public Service Vehicle (PSV) operators are called to Public Inquiry with the Traffic Commissioner. A great many of these relate to the improper use of a restricted operator’s licence. An operator running PSVs under an incorrect licence can quickly find that licence revoked. It is […]
Tachograph Offences, Drivers’ Hours and Card-Pulling: An Essential Guide for HGV and PSV Drivers
For many years the tachograph system has been central to the European haulage industry. Without it, the enforcement agencies (DVSA / police / Office of the Traffic Commissioner) would have no reliable or practical way of policing the rules on working time and drivers’ hours. But what happens […]
HELP! – The DVSA are coming to visit
There are some things that happen, even to the best run businesses, which are less than welcome. High up on that list must be the DVSA (formerly VOSA) announcing that they intend to visit your operating centre. However well-meaning, it is always a trial when your systems are put […]
Being Interviewed by the DVSA (VOSA) can be a Sharp Wake-up Call – Don’t Ignore It!
Every year, thousands of operators are interviewed under caution by the DVSA (formerly VOSA). This often follows a compliance investigation at their premises. The evidence gathered at these interviews is recorded, and can be used as evidence in a future criminal prosecution. It can also be used at a […]
Tachograph Offences – An all too Common Nightmare Scenario
Consider the following scenario: You are the operator of a small general haulage business running 6 trucks. So far business has been good to you. You employ 10 drivers and hope to increase to 8 trucks within a year or so. You are your own Transport Manager, but […]
GOOD REPUTE 2 – Other Behaviour which can Damage your Repute (Freight)
“It takes many good deeds to build a good reputation, and only one bad one to lose it.” Benjamin Franklin There are a thousand ways to damage your Good Repute, and Operators are discovering new ones all the time. We have already looked at what “Good […]
