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A driver who often slept for only four hours a night has been convicted of 32 offences of creating false tachograph records. As a result Allen Pearson has had his LGV driving licence revoked and been disqualified from holding or applying for such a licence for 12 months. He had been called before North-Western Deputy Traffic Commissioner Elizabeth Perrett at a Golborne public inquiry. Traffic examiner Sarah Dalton said Pearson had interfered with the tachograph, winding the clock back, over  a period of two months. Comparison with other documents obtained showed that on numerous occasions he had "tipped off the card", meaning that he had worked unrecorded time. On one occasion a break had been drawn in by hand. Pearson was subsequently convicted of 32 offences and ordered to pay fines and costs of £1,365.

Admitting that he "took the card out" when it would have shown excess hours, Pearson said it had been quite common for him only to have four hours' sleep. He knew what he was doing was illegal but said it was the only way to get the job done. He rarely slept more than four or five hours in any event, he added. If he lost his LGV licence and was on the dole, he said, he would be unable to meet his obligations and pay his fines. He added that he would be unable to earn enough money driving smaller vehicles.

The Deputy TC said she bore in mind that the Court of Appeal had made it plain that those who committed offences of this kind involving the safety of  the public must expect serious consequences. The result of a truck driver falling asleep at the wheel for even a few seconds could be catastrophic, the DTC added. There had been a number of appalling cases where that had happened resulting in multiple fatalities. She had taken into account the fact that the falsification of charts had taken place over an extended period on a significant number of occasions without any regard for or appreciation of the possible road safety implications.

The Deputy TC said she was concerned about Pearson's conduct as a driver of a motor vehicle and placed no weight upon the financial consequences of her decision.