Spare Appliances

[Dragon]

Over the past year or so, we've had a real problem with spare appliances when our regular appliances go "otr" for repair or scheduled maintenance.

Many of the older appliance come without head restraints as they were registered before regs came in.  All of the drivers on shift refuse to drive them on health and safety grounds (rightly so in my opinion) as anyone above 5ft 10 would be at real risk in any collision.

Our hierarchy are following the line of "it's road legal, drive it or face disciplinary action" while our h&s officer, inexplicably, considers it not to be a h&s matter.

I post to enquire whether anyone knows what the actual regs are regards head restraints?

Surely, even if it's not a legal obligation it is a moral one?

[AnthonyB]

For many years, large aspects of workplace fleet and their construction have not been covered by H&S law as it usually exempts road vehicles such as cars, lorries etc by defering to the Road Traffic Act, Construction & Use regs,etc as a more appropriate & suitable control, so H&S officers have been able to avoid the area.

However if there is such a concern (& a history of injuries) then a risk assessment is required to see if retrofitting is warranted (or not). Just because something was fine at the time it was made does not automatically make it so now

[toby14483]

Now although I do agree with the point that if the vehicles are potentially hazourdous to drivers and crew, you have a point on complaints, it is my view that we as Fire service personnel have a duty to the public to go and do what we can by any means of transportation we have available.

If the drivers are worried about becoming involved in an RTC themselves and the potential risks, then drive a little slower, I would say.

Yes, complain about the condition of the vehicle, but dont refuse to ride/drive it in my opinion. What we tend to do if something is not right in the state of Denmark, we put in an accident report or a near miss report for every little minor thing for it. It soons gets sorted then. H&S make it happen.