HGV fines for insecure loads on the rise

So far, 24 officers have been given extra training on tackling insecure loads and the number of fines being issued to vehicle owners has quadrupled.

The force said that it receives about 750 calls each year about shed loads.

Superintendent Roger Essell, of Operations Support, said: “Some of these are a simple clean up taking a matter of minutes but others can lead to the motorway being closed for a number of hours.

“Through education and enforcement we can make HGV owners comply with the regulations and ultimately make our roads safer.”

The force has been working with the Health and Safety Executive, Highways England and the Driver Vehicle Standards Agency in training roads policing officers in tackling insecure loads on the regions roads.

Mike Higgins, from Highways England, said: “Insecure loads pose a significant risk to the travelling public and to those police officers, Highways England traffic officers and road workers who have to pick up the debris or deal with the resulting collisions.

"We look forward to the results of this team work and if successful, replicating this way of working in more areas across the country.”