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Unions in VOSA ask for meeting with road trade associations

25 August 2010

Unions in VOSA ask for meeting with road trade associations We hope to create a united front with them concerning the future of safety testing

DfT is seeking to have testers and technical staff from VOSA (Vehicle & Operators Services agency) conduct the annual safety test of HGVs, buses and coaches at private sector sites ( these sites are known as Approved Testing Facilities (ATF)). This allows the Department to shut down VOSA testing stations where those testers and technical staff currently work.

The problem for DfT is that the ATF policy is not working. Private industry prefers travelling to VOSA testing stations for the annual check rather than have the testers and technical staff go to ATF sites.

The road trade associations recognise this and have written to DfT’s Secretary of State accordingly. Unfortunately they went further and urged Phillip Hammond to have the safety checks conducted by private sector staff. They argue that the MOT system, where garages check vans and cars, shows that the private sector can be trusted with safety testing vehicles.

The Unions have written to associations stating:

In your letter to Philip Hammond dated 4 August 2010 you indicate your preferred option would be a car and van style scheme for the testing of heavy vehicles. You also suggested the privatisation of VOSA’s testing work to either a single or a small number of organisations. The VOSA TUS (VOSA Trade Union Side – umbrella body for all the unions in the agency) does not believe privatisation, by whatever means, will lead to safer vehicles on our roads. In relation to your preferred option, we would draw your attention to the fact that despite VOSA undertaking the training of MOT station Authorised Examiners and Nominated Testers, monitoring both test standards and site operation and taking enforcement action when they get it wrong, the car and van testing scheme still returns 15% of vehicles tested receiving the wrong test result. This figure needs to be considered against the 0.05% of incorrect decisions made by VOSA in the current HGV test.

The suggestion of simply moving VOSA’s testing activity to private organisations will not remove the profit versus safety concerns we have. A private testing company will, we believe, be interested in testing as many vehicles as possible to maximise profit rather than ensuring that testing is undertaken to the correct standard. This will not improve road safety.

Your letter makes reference to the current standard of GB trucks. We agree that GB’s trucks are maintained to a high standard, particularly when compared to our European counterparts many of which have privatised testing regimes in place. We believe the standard of the GB fleet is as a direct result of the work our collective members undertake, yours in operating, servicing, maintaining and repairing the vehicles and ours in conducting safety checks, both at annual test and the roadside so ensuring that vehicles meet minimum safety and legal standards.

You cite the loss of repute or the creation of a poor vehicle test history, with the subsequent impact on their OCRS score as something that would drive operators / repairers to impartial test vehicles. However we are currently seeing more than 25% of heavy vehicles prepared and presented for test, in what we must assume the operator / repairer believes is a compliant condition, still failing the test. It therefore seems that the loss of repute or a worsening OCRS score plays little part in the current preparation of vehicles for test.

Your option of VOSA retaining responsibility for, and testing at, its own test stations is the one nearest to our own vision for the future. However our vision is not to “do nothing” and we have a view as to how a future network of VOSA test stations together with DPs (Designated Premises – a sort of ATFs) /ATFs could deliver the industry’s needs. This is surely an area worthy of further debate.

To this end, the VOSA TUS would like to extend an invitation to meet with the Trade Associations and discuss what we believe is an alternative option for the future provision of heavy vehicle testing.

We shall see how they respond. 

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