Truck & Driver UK – September 2019

20

UP FRONT

August 2019 Truck & Driver

Contact

Sharp End anger 1

I’m so angry I’m finding it difficult

to write this email. I’m angry that

someone could write such a

small-minded, ill-thought-out,

self-centred and thoroughly

stupid article – and I’m shocked

that it was even printed. I refer of

course to the diatribe written by

Alex Saville (From the Sharp

End, July T&D).

Traffic congestion in

London is a daily occurrence

and increased congestion

because of a peaceful protest

by environmentalists is a very

temporary problem.

Climate change, however,

is not a temporary problem.

It’s a very real one and a very

serious problem for every man,

woman and child living on this

planet. Anyone anywhere who is

willing to put their lives on hold,

and their personal freedom in

jeopardy, to highlight what is

undoubtedly the most serious

catastrophe mankind has ever

faced is to be commended,

not insulted or slandered by

shortsighted, selfish people like

Alex Saville.

I don’t know if the motives

of 100% of the climate change

protesters are genuine and I

don’t care. I’m willing to give

them the benefit of the doubt and

I want to thank them sincerely

from the bottom of my heart for

their efforts.

I’m delighted that the

politicians are listening to them.

I’m delighted that the judges

are being lenient with them. I’m

delighted that the police have,

in some circumstances, been

lenient with them.

Politicians, judges and the

police need a planet to live on,

just like the rest of us. Our children

and our children’s children

depend on environmentalists

and climate-change protesters to

ensure there will still be a planet

sufficiently habitable for them to

live on.

I too am a truck driver. I only

have the time to write this as I’m

on a 32-hour sailing from Finland

back to Germany. I have been

inconvenienced many times by

French protesters and climate-

change protesters. I have missed

ferries home to Ireland to see

my children because of protests.

But still I have nothing but

admiration for these people who

are protesting. I’m sick of hearing

truck driver begrudgers – the

French this, the gilet jaunes that,

the climate protesters the other.

I’m sick of hearing, from

the likes of Alex Saville in his

tiresome rant, that if we blocked

the roads with our trucks the

full rigours of the law would be

brought to bear on us; or, as

others put it, if we truck drivers

stuck together we could cause

chaos etc etc.

Well, do you know what? We

don’t, we never have and we

never will, because this industry

is full of people like Alex Saville,

who are great at kicking down on

people who are actively trying to

My local practice, Grove

Medical Centre in Felixstowe,

recently told me they do not

perform D4 medical

examinations and directed me

to the company Doctor On

Wheels. I undertook the D

and promptly sent it off to the

DVLA. A week later it was

returned rejected because

Doctors On Wheels is being

investigated by trading

standards over the

qualifications of its doctors.

I returned to Grove Medical

Centre, who agreed on this

occasion to perform the D

examination. Overworked NHS

practices say they do not have

the time or the funding for D

medical examinations.

The letter I received with the

rejected D4 medical report

stated ‘please be sure to use

your local doctor or other

company’, yet HGV drivers

cannot use any other company

The doctor

debacle

with any confidence that the

DVLA will not reject the medical

report. Although my local medical

practice was able to assist me,

they cannot do so in future.

Going forward, the DVLA has

to provide a list of accredited

medical organisations where

HGV drivers can be given a

thorough medical examination in

the knowledge that it will be

officially accepted.

The Doctors on Wheels

website is now closed and there

are no refunds. The DVLA

refused a refund, so I lost £61.

Grove Medical Centre charged

me £135. As a driver, I cannot

afford to lose money like this.

What happens now? There are

implications for road transport

insurance, as drivers who’ve been

passed fit by Doctors on Wheels

may not be insured because of the

DVLA’s doubts about the company.

Sacha Gosling

Maritime Transport, Felixstowe

If you now go to the website

doctorsonwheels.co.uk the

company states that it will refund

medical providers. The DVLA

are, from our direct experience

over the past few months,

useless, so we won’t hold our

breath – Dougie

Contribution of the month wins a superb 1:76 modern truck

model from Oxford Diecast that retails at around £18.95. See

the full range of models on the website oxforddiecast.co.uk

Get in touch! Email us at dougie.rankine@

roadtransport.com or keep in touch via

our social media channels

LETTER

OF THE

MONTH

Wins an Oxford die-

cast model truck!

SHUTTERSTOCK

the cost of any medicals either

booked or rejected – email

enquiries@doctorsonwheels.

co.uk Nevertheless, this is a big

issue and hugely frustrating for

drivers. We’re looking into

seeking an approved list of