Discharged over unstable roof
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• Paul and Edwin Carter, trading as C & J Express, of Pocklington, North Yorkshire, were given on absolute discharge for using a vehicle with a load likely to cause danger or nuisance after Halifax magistrates were told the driver had ignored advice from a customer about how to carry a conservatory roof. The court heard that police stopped a Mercedes van on the M62 motorway at Ainley Bank last November. Strapped to the nearside was a conservatory roof, which projected 1.72 metres above the vehicle, creating a large sail-like area. The whole thing was very unstable and the police had stopped the vehicle after seeing it zig-zagging along the motorway. Defending, Gary Hodgson said that the vehicle was specially adapted to carry such roofs. Hooks had been fitted at the top and a step-like attachment installed at the bottom to take the weight. Such contracts were regularly undertaken but on this particular occasion, it was an unusually large roof. The customer had written to say that it had pointed this out to the driver, and that it had told him that it believed the roof should be loaded on its side. If that had been done there would have been no problem. Hodgson pointed out that there was a telephone in the cab of the vehicle, which the driver did not use. He had acted on his own volition, not listening to the customer or seeking advice from his employers.