Queensland to introduce new chain of responsibility law, which will target those fiddling with speed limiters
By Samantha Freestone | March 16, 2010
Truck drivers tampering with speed limiters will be targeted as part of chain of responsibility speed reforms to go before Queensland’s parliament.
The reform, already introduced in NSW, Victoria and South Australia, will make it illegal to fiddle with limiters and will force all parties in the supply chain to ensure drivers are not forced to speed.
The Queensland Trucking Association (QTA) says it has received confirmation the chain of responsibility Bill will go into the parliament this week and debated from next Wednesday.
Once passed, the Bill will be implemented from July this year.
QTA CEO Peter Garske says the reference to speed limiters is one of the most significant aspects of the reform because it is currently legal to play with them.
“For the first time in Queensland we will be able to prosecute people for tampering with speed limiters,” Garske says.
“That has to be is one of the more significant parts of the legislation.”
“I wouldn’t say for a minute that reputable workshops partake in this behaviour. My intelligence tells me that unscrupulous operators and unscrupulous drivers tend to be the culprits.”
The speed reforms will possibly make managers up the chain responsible and liable for offences incurred by their staff, similar to other laws such as overloading and fatigue management.
This includes employers, operators, prime contractors, schedulers, loading managers, and certain consignors and consignees.