News

Next ADR driver training course

Do any of your drivers moving waste asbestos need to become ADR qualified? Our next ADR driver training course, specifically tailored for those moving in-scope UN Class 9 Asbestos, will be held on 20th and 21st May at the ARCA Training Centre in Rayleigh, Essex. Please contact us for a booking form or for any further information.

Date :  29 Apr 2010
Provided by :  Jane Ludgate

DANGEROUS GOODS BY SEA - MANDATORY TRAINING

From 1st January 2010, the training requirements stated in the International Maritime Dangerous Goods Regulations (I.M.D.G.) have been made mandatory. It is now a legal requirement that all staff involved in the transport of dangerous goods must have appropriate safety awareness and job-specific training to comply with IMDG Chapter 1.3. This includes shore-based staff, for example, your office staff, loaders, warehousemen and managers. 
 
Ludgate Consultancy and Training specialise in providing this training on your premises, tailored to suit your type of business and also the specific staff responsibilities. If you are also involved in road movements, we can deliver multi-modal training to incorporate compliance with ADR Chapter 1.3 and CDG regulations. 
 
We suggest that you contact us to discuss your individual training and compliance needs so that we can provide a personalised quotation.

Date :  4 Jan 2010
Provided by :  Webmaster

TUNNEL RESTRICTIONS IN FORCE

The tunnel restrictions corresponding to the tunnel codes on DG documentation have come into effect w.e.f. today (1/1/2010). 
 
The tunnel code for each UN number and packing group combination can be found by looking at column 15 of the Dangerous Goods List in the ADR regulations.  
 
The codes relating to U.K. tunnels have been finalised as follows:  
 
Tunnel Category  
 
Dartford C  
Mersey D  
Clyde D  
Limehouse E  
Rotherhithe E  
Blackwall E  
East India Dock Road E  
Tyne D  
 
No other U.K. tunnels will have restrictions in place.

Date :  1 Jan 2010
Provided by :  Bob Ludgate

Graduated Fixed Penalties - Results of 1st Quarter Released

Figures collated by the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) show that 11,000 fixed penalty notices were issued following the introduction of Graduated Fixed Penalties on 28 May this year. In addition over 800 vehicles were immobilised under new powers given to VOSA alongside the introduction of fixed penalties. 
 
More than £500,000 has been collected in deposit payments since VOSA started issuing fixed penalties with over 60 per cent of penalty notices being issued to the drivers of non-UK vehicles. Prior to the introduction of the new scheme, drivers of non UK based vehicles were usually dealt with by prohibition only. 
 
Fines range from £30 to £200 per offence, including overloading, drivers' hours and mechanical defects.

Date :  11 Sep 2009
Provided by :  Webmaster

HSE issue new guidance on chemical warehousing

The 4th edition of Chemical Warehousing - The Storage of Packaged Dangerous Substances (HSG71) has now been published. 
 
It is available from HSE books at £9.50 in hardcopy, or as a free pdf download from the web address below.

Date :  13 Jul 2009
Provided by :  Webmaster
Reference : http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/priced/hsg71.pdf

TUNNEL RESTRICTION CODES ANNOUNCED

As you know, the tunnel codes must be added to DG documentation w.e.f. 1st July (although the tunnel restrictions will not come into effect until 1st January 2010). 
 
The tunnel code for each UN number and packing group combination can be found by looking at column 15 of the Dangerous Goods List in the ADR regulations. 
 
The codes relating to U.K. tunnels have now been published:  
 
Tunnel Category  
 
Dartford C  
Mersey D  
Clyde D  
Ramsgate C*  
Limehouse E  
Rotherhithe E  
Blackwall E  
East India Dock Road E  
Tyne D 
 
* Provisional code, could possibly downgrade in the future following risk assessment.  
 
No other tunnels will have restrictions in place.

Date :  9 Jul 2009
Provided by :  Webmaster

DRIVERS' HOURS LEGISLATION UNDER REVIEW

The Department for Transport are considering changing the domestic drivers' hours and record keeping requirements and have issued a consultative document giving the background and asking for feedback.  
 
The document can be found at: 
http://www.dft.gov.uk/consultations/open/domesticdrivershours/consultation.pdf 
 
You will see that Sections 3 and 4 (pages 7-14) explain the current position. I realise that if you work under EU tachograph legislation, any changes to the domestic rules will not directly affect you. However, changes could have an adverse indirect input by making other transport regimes more flexible, so you may wish to have input, contact details are shown on page 6 and comments must be received by 13th October.

Date :  4 Aug 2009
Reference : http://www.dft.gov.uk/consultations/open/domesticdrivershours/consultation.pdf

ADR 2009 FULLY IMPLEMENTED VIA UK DOMESTIC REGULATIONS

Just a quick reminder that from Wednesday 1st July, you must comply fully with the 2009 Carriage of Dangerous Goods and Transportable Pressure Equipment Regulations, which implement ADR 2009 into UK law. 
For your reference, CDG09 can be found at http://opsi.gov.uk/si/si2009/uksi_20091348_en_1  
and ADR at  
http://www.unece.org/trans/danger/publi/adr/adr2009/09ContentsE.html

Date :  25 Jun 2009

Extension of the Graduated Fixed Penalty System

New powers to ensure that all drivers who break the rules of the road face tough penalties are now in force. 
VOSA examiners will also - for the first time - be able to issue fixed penalty notices to drivers of goods vehicles from both the UK and abroad, in addition to immobilising vehicles where driving hours, weight or vehicle safety rules have been broken. 
Under the new laws drivers - including hauliers - living outside the UK will no longer be able to escape the penalties faced by UK offenders. The Police and examiners from the Vehicle Operator and Services Agency (VOSA) can now collect on-the-spot payments from alleged offenders who cannot provide a satisfactory UK address. Those caught committing an endorsable offence will also have penalty points put on their UK driving record, which could lead to them being banned from driving in the UK. From today those drivers without a satisfactory UK address who commit traffic offences will have to pay a financial penalty deposit equal to the amount of the fixed penalty or £300 as a deposit in respect of a potential court fine.  
The new measures will also enable the Police and VOSA to immobilise any vehicle that has been prohibited from continuing a journey where a driver is breaking the rules on drivers' hours; is driving an overloaded or unroadworthy vehicle; or in cases where a driver refuses to pay a requested financial deposit.  
The immobilisation powers are an additional sanction to help enforce prohibitions issued against vehicles - for instance because they are mechanically defective or, in the case of a commercial vehicle, the vehicle is overloaded or the driver has been driving too long.  
These powers will enable the police and, for the first time, VOSA, to issue fixed penalties for a list of non-endorsable offences including:  
* offences under drivers' hours rules  
* failing to hold an Operator's Licence  
* overloading a vehicle  
* 'cabotage' offences  
* failing to produce evidence of a driver Certificate of Professional Competence.  
The levels of fixed penalties range from £30 to £200. Drivers' hours and overloading offences will be subject to graduated fixed penalties (according to the seriousness of the behaviour and the circumstances of the offence).

Date :  14 Apr 2009
Provided by :  Bob Ludgate

GOOD NEWS REGARDING THE ENVIRONMENT AGENCY!!!

The Hazardous Waste (England and Wales) Regulations 2005 will be amended with effect from 6th April 2009. 
 
The significant change is to the exemption criteria for premises registration.  
 
From 6th April, ALL premises from which no more than 500 kgs of hazardous waste is produced, collected or removed in any twelve month period will be exempt from registration. Remember that this is any twelve month period, and not a calendar year, so consider possible production of hazardous waste in the next twelve months, as well as what has happened in the previous year when deciding whether the premises are exempt from registration.  
 
Also, you must have the permission of any third party for whom you register premises. 
 
These changes currently only affect England. The Welsh Assembly has not yet made a decision regarding implementation in Wales.

Date :  2 Apr 2009
Provided by :  Jane Ludgate

--- All Demolition and Asbestos Contractors --- 
Having to comply with too much legislation?

Dangerous Goods, Hazardous Waste, Transport Regulations..... 
 
You will be aware that the burden of legislation on you gets heavier every year. In addition to HSE laws governing your core activities of asbestos removal, you must comply with various transport laws and also specialist regulations regarding hazardous waste, dangerous goods transport and registration of waste carriers, to name but a few.  
 
These laws cannot be ignored because some elements do apply to you. There are many implications of an offence, including H.S.E., Police, V.O.S.A. and E.A. prohibitions, fines, loss of reputation or even imprisonment. Imagine how this would affect you. 
 
You do not have to be a specialist in this multitude of rules and regulations because, as the leading consultancy in the field of asbestos transport, Ludgate offer you the benefit of a one-stop audit for your business, covering compliance with transport and environmental law. We will visit you to ascertain your level of compliance and provide a written report with our recommendations to address any issues.  
 
This essential service is currently available at the special price of £690 + VAT for bookings made before 1st October 2009. Please contact us soon to arrange a date for your audit.

Date :  18 Aug 2009
Provided by :  Jane Ludgate

DRIVER LICENCE CHECKS MADE EASY!

It is an offence for a person to drive a vehicle on a public road without an appropriate licence for that vehicle. You or your company may also be prosecuted if you cause or permit the offence and most insurance policies will be invalidated if the driver is not properly licenced to drive. Therefore, to avoid hefty costs incurred through not being insured, as well as fines and loss of reputation, we strongly recommend that you establish a routine driving licence checking system. This should cover all your employees and anyone else who may drive your vehicles, such as agency staff. You should keep a photocopy of both sides of licences and counterparts. 
 
Checklist: 
1. personal details are correct - name, date of birth and address 
2. issue number and issue date different to last check - so what else has changed? 
3. whether any medicals/renewals are due in the near future - if so, advise driver 
4. age restrictions 
5. driver holds required entitlements 
6. any conditions are complied with, e.g. wearing glasses, using 'L' plates 
7. photocard expiry date 
8. any new endorsements/disqualifications 
 
These checks should be done regularly, not just at the start of employment, to ensure the required licence is still valid. However, as we all know, asking your drivers to produce their licences for checking every six months or so can be a logistical nightmare.  
The solution is to use the information from driving licence records held by the Driver and Vehicle Licencing Agency. This is normally only given to the record holder but employers may apply for these record details provided that the licence holder has given permission and that the required payment has been received by the Agency.  
 
These are the options available to you:- 
 
1. If you do not require anything in writing and will accept verbal confirmation of the licence details, you can telephone the Data Subject Enquiries section of the D.V.L.A. on 08702 400009, with the driver present. The driver will have to give his permission for his details to be released.  
 
2. Alternatively, again for verbal confirmation of the licence details, the driver can telephone the Data Subject Enquiries section of the D.V.L.A. on 08702 400009 and leave his permission for his details to be released. You can then telephone their premium rate line (49p a minute) which is 09061 393837 to obtain the information. This section is open from 08.00 am - 8.30 pm Monday-Friday and 08.00 am - 5.30 pm Saturday. 
 
3. You can open a pre-funded account with this section and register as a user by writing to Data Subject Enquiries, D12, DVLA, Longview Road, Swansea SA6 7JL, enclosing a cheque for a minimum of £50. This amount will be deposited into your account and will cover your first ten enquiries. Once your account has been opened, the D.V.L.A. will contact you to confirm your account number, which must be quoted on all correspondence you send to the centre. This account must stay in credit and if the account does not have sufficient funds then they will do no further checks until the account has been replenished.  
 
When applying to open an account, you should state whether you would like your customer statement sent every fortnight or month and what you would like your minimum balance to be, before a reminder letter is sent to you.  
 
Then, for each enquiry, you would need to fax or post a signed mandate from the driver before they could release the details. A template for this mandate can be obtained from us, or from the D.V.L.A. on 01792 310075 or by emailing Drivers_FPE@dvla.gsi.gov.uk. Provided the details on the mandate match the information on their records, the D.V.L.A. will deduct the fee of £5 from your account for each individual enquiry processed.  
 
4. Alternatively, if you have very large numbers of drivers and you intend checking 200 licences a month, you can send the driver numbers to be checked on a CD-ROM, and have the information returned by CD. To enquire more about this particular system you can contact Jackie Quinn, jackie.quinn@dvla.gsi.gov.uk, who will advise you further. 
 
As usual, please contact us with any questions.

Date :  9 Jul 2009
Provided by :  Bob Ludgate

In-house ADR Driver Training

We offer in-house ADR training anywhere in the U.K., at your premises or nearby, weekdays or weekends.  
 
We are able to tailor a bespoke course, or a series of different courses, specifically tailored to cover those classes of dangerous goods applicable to your business needs. 
 
This option is extremely popular as, unlike the usual full ADR courses, it does not keep staff away from their work for any additional unnecessary time , learning about aspects of dangerous goods not applicable to your industry. Not only is this cost effective and minimises operational impact, it does not contribute to staff turnover. 
 
Please contact us to discuss what is the best solution for your company.

Date :  20 Jul 2009
Provided by :  Jane Ludgate

Digital tachograph adaptors for light vehicles

A word of warning, some dealers are still unaware of the legal position concerning digital tachographs. 
 
If you operate a goods vehicle:- 
- first registered after 30th April 2006 
- and the driver is subject to the Drivers' Hours legislation. 
 
then a digital tachograph must be fitted and operated. 
 
Retro-fitting these to vehicles has been simplified by the European Commission who have published a regulation to allow the use of adaptors in passenger and goods vehicles up to 3.5 tonnes, when their use with a trailer takes the combination into scope of the EU rules. 
 
Installation plaques must contain details of the adaptor and these new-style plaques must be fitted at the time of installation.

Date :  23 Jul 2009
Provided by :  Bob Ludgate