Shropshire lorry driver suspended for making false driving records
An HGV driver has been suspended from professional driving for knowingly making false driving records.
Industry regulator Kevin Rooney made an order against Christopher Mannion, 53, of Greenfields, St Martins, near Oswestry, and a host of other drivers after concluding they had chosen to hide the true facts of their driving.
Mr Mannion was convicted of two offences of knowingly making a false record on August 15, 2016. The offences occurred in May 2014.
His false records hid offences where he drove during a rest period.
Traffic commissioner Mr Rooney said that drivers’ hours and tachograph rules were designed to prevent drivers from working whilst tired.
They also set a context for competition between hauliers – and therefore drivers – by specifying maximum driving periods and minimum rest periods.
The rules mean that operators and drivers cannot compete on the basis of driving excessively.
After suspending Mr Mannion and drivers from other areas of the UK, he said: “The system of regulating drivers’ hours relies to a significant degree on trust and it is inescapable that the drivers’ actions struck at the heart of that trust.”
Mr Mannion’s suspension runs for four weeks from July 9 will begin at midnight on July 9 and run for four weeks.
