36% of Irish HGVs fail UK roadworthiness tests

MORE THAN one third of Irish commercial vehicles inspected by British authorities while travelling in the UK failed the roadworthiness check, according to preliminary figures from the UK’s Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (Vosa).

It reports that 36 per cent of Irish-registered HGVs inspected failed random roadworthiness tests in the year to April. It also found almost 34 per cent of drivers of Irish-registered HGVs inspected were in breach of rules limiting the number of hours they can drive.

They were served with prohibition notices, which can range from an improvement order for the vehicle to, in more serious cases, the impounding of the vehicle.

The draft Vosa statistics do not differentiate between types of prohibition notices issued, nor do they compare the performance of Irish vehicles and drivers with their European counterparts. This comparison will not be available until the final report later this year.

In 2008, Irish vehicles were in receipt of the highest number of prohibition notices among foreign vehicles on UK roads, although a spokesman for the Road Safety Authority (RSA) noted that they were also subject to the highest number of tests.

The RSA said the statistics “show a significant improvement”. The prohibition rate for Irish-registered trailer lorries checked in the UK fell from 57 to 39 per cent and for roadworthiness from 38 to 36 per cent.

Since the extent of the issue with Irish HGVs came to light two years ago, Vosa has sent monthly updates to the Irish authorities and the RSA said last night that it acts on this data.

According to the most recent commercial vehicle testing data for the State, a roadworthiness check of 2,087 commercial vehicles found 717 had defects, or 34 per cent. This is almost identical to the test failure rate in the Vosa report.

Data for inspections and prosecutions of hauliers by the RSA during 2008 will not be available until later in the year.

The ongoing level of problems detected in the British checks raises questions about the Irish testing regime, as hauliers say vehicles travelling to the UK are among the best in the Irish fleet as owners anticipate a highly likelihood of inspections.