Use of Spec Lift
All BVSF members will be aware of the involvement we, the BVSF, had in the creation of the recovery guide with VOSA earlier in the year.
We have recently been made aware of a court case that the Police brought against HBC regarding the use of a spec lift to move a damaged vehicle which by definition was unfit for action or use.
The Court acquitted HBC of any wrong doing indicating that the Police were wrong in their interpretation of a “Broken Down Vehicle”.
It would be nice to think that the involvement of the BVSF, the only non recovery organisation to be invited to be involved in the creation of the Recovery Document was of assistance to HBC in putting their successful argument to the Court.
Please see below for a brief description of the events.
USE OF SPEC LIFT
There has been a recent prosecution involving a HBC driver. The offence charged was that a motor vehicle was used on the road when a part of its braking system, namely the towed vehicle, was not coupled to the braking system of the towing vehicle, contrary to Regulation 18.1 of the Road Vehicle Construction Use Regulations 1986.
Although a fixed penalty was issued to the driver, it was not accepted. The case proceeded to a hearing on 11 November 2013. The prosecution was by the police.
The spec lift was fitted to the HGV transporter and was towing a motor vehicle on the specialised lifting arm. The HGV was fitted with brakes which were in good working order the vehicle being towed by the HGV was also fitted with brakes, the registration number of the towed vehicle was covered up with a number plate/lighting board with functioning indicators and brake lights. The front part of the towed vehicle was suspended in the air and the rear axle of the vehicle was on the road. This made the towed vehicle a trailer and as this towed vehicle had brakes fitted they had to be working. However, the braking system on the towed vehicle had no means of being operated by the towing vehicle, and the spec lift had no braking system fitted.
Construction Use Regulations, Regulation 15/16 provides that requirements to a braking system do not apply to a trailer which is a broken-down vehicle.
Furthermore, regulation 19 deals with the application of brakes to the trailer whereby the broken down vehicle is that trailer when used by the spec lift. This regulation does not apply to a trailer which (a) in compliance with these regulations is fitted with brakes which automatically come into operation on the overrun of the trailer or (b) is a broken down vehicle being drawn whether or not in consequence of a breakdown in such a manner that it cannot be steered by its own steering gear.
In this particular case, which was presented before the court, the vehicle was a Ford Ka that had been involved in a road traffic accident and was therefore at that time accepted by the court to come within the definition of a broken down vehicle.
The broken down vehicle, the Ford Ka, was being drawn by the car transporter as a direct consequence of accident damage causing it, by definition, to become a broken down vehicle which complies with this exemption. It being correctly fitted to the spec lift and being drawn in such a manner as laid out in the regulations.
It was found that the prosecution were wrong in their submission that a broken down vehicle did not include an accident damaged vehicle. The definition of broken down or disabled being that which is unfit for action or use. The vehicle therefore having been deemed to be a broken down vehicle was found to be transported correctly in this instance.
