Mr. Spearingasked the Secretary of State for Transport what steps he normally takes after heavy commercial vehicles have been involved in serious accidents, in respect of their previous statutory tests, the condition of the vehicle at the time of the accident, information from the tachograph or any other inquiry.
Mr. David MitchellIn the case of serious accidents involving heavy lorries, buses or coaches, the vehicle is generally inspected by a vehicle examiner employed either by my Department or by the police to ascertain whether a mechanical failure of the vehicle was responsible. Where my examiners are involved, they would obtain full details of the previous maintenance history and the date of the last staturory test. If there were evidence that maintenance has been neglected, prosecution of the owner and the revocation of his operator's licence would be considered. Any evidence of a design defect would be taken up with the manufacturer.