SURVIVE Response to the matters raised by the Coroner in the inquest into the death of Terence Booth

In his statement at the end of the inquest into the tragic death of Terence Booth, the coroner raises a number of questions on best practice that require consideration by SURVIVE. This document summarises our initial comments on the specific matters arising.

1.    Use of the Fend position.

Both the best practice guidelines and PAS 43 recommend roadside Technician/Road Recovery Operators to position their vehicles in the fend position to the rear of the casualty vehicle unless a dynamic risk assessment concludes that an alternative position would reduce the risk. The most obvious examples of where positioning the vehicle in front of the casualty is appropriate would be:

•    In situations where a decision has already been taken to recover or remove the casualty vehicle and therefore the roadside Technician/Road Recovery Operator will position his vehicle for immediate loading of the casualty vehicle

•    In situations where there is a high probability that a recovery will be required and to relocate the breakdown vehicle from the fend position to the front of the casualty vehicle would involve heightened risk and could seriously endanger the safety of the Technician/Road Recovery Operator, the customer or other members of the public.

•    In situations where the presence of the breakdown vehicle in front of the casualty would materially reduce the time taken to remobilise the casualty vehicle. This might be because a remobilisation can only be effected with the breakdown vehicle in front of the casualty vehicle or substantially reduces the time taken to remobilise the casualty vehicle. This is because the risk of an accident is directly related to the time a casualty vehicle is at risk and therefore a reduction in the time to remobilise or remove reduces the risk of an accident.

Roadside Assistance providers have no control over the time or location at which incidents occur and therefore each situation is different and it is for this reason that the industry recognises the need for every Technician/Road Recovery Operator to be trained to undertake a dynamic risk assessment at the scene of an incident.

We have concluded that the Best Practice Guidelines should acknowledge that situations can occur in which the fend position is inappropriate and should also give guidance on best practice to adopt in those situations where the breakdown or recovery vehicle is required to be parked in front of the casualty vehicle.

PAS 43:2012 will cross reference to the Best Practice Guidelines but will also include appropriate comment in Annex C.

We do not believe that the relative sizes of the breakdown or recovery vehicle and the casualty vehicle should influence the positioning of the breakdown vehicle at the scene of an incident because the benefits of the conspicuity of the breakdown or recovery vehicle more than off-set any considerations of relative weight.

2.    Use of Battery Packs and jump leads

The appropriateness of carrying battery packs and/or jump leads, which are normally plugging into an Anderson socket on the breakdown vehicle, is entirely dependant on the duty undertaken by that breakdown or recovery vehicle.

•    Many organisations (including AA, RAC and other operators) operate recovery vehicles used exclusively for vehicle movement and these carry neither battery packs, nor jump leads.

•    The effectiveness of battery packs is dependant on the type of casualty vehicle. AA and RAC patrols attend a very high proportion of passenger cars and light commercial vehicles where battery packs are generally effective. These are “on charge” when not in use and via an Anderson socket in the breakdown vehicle. Where the duty involves remobilisation of heavier vehicles, battery packs are less effective.

•    All breakdown vehicles deployed to remobilise a casualty vehicle carry jump leads for use when the use of a battery pack is ineffective or inappropriate.

These are sufficiently long to allow connection when the roadside assistance vehicle is to the rear of the casualty vehicle but not to allow connection to the breakdown vehicle some 18 metres to the rear as recommended for the Fend position in the Best Practice Guidelines.

This would require leads of a length that would be too bulky to stow and would be less effective than shorter leads because of power losses over the length of the cable. Where jump leads are the most appropriate solution, there will be occasions where it is may be necessary to position the breakdown vehicle in front of the casualty vehicle in order connect to the casualty vehicle battery.

We therefore propose to add further content to the best practice guidelines and to cross-refer to these in PAS 43 as follows:
“When attempting to remobilise a vehicle with a flat battery, a risk assessment will normally conclude that the roadside assistance vehicle should be positioned in the fend position and that a portable battery pack should be used to effect remobilisation.

If a battery pack is either not available or is not appropriate for the task, then the roadside assistance vehicle should, where possible, be positioned to the rear of the casualty vehicle as far from the casualty vehicle as the jump leads will permit. Consideration should be given to the provision of an Anderson Socket at the front of breakdown vehicles in addition to similar provision at the rear of the vehicle to maximise this distance.

Only in situations where a battery pack is unavailable or is either inappropriate or ineffective and the location of the battery on the casualty vehicle precludes positioning the breakdown vehicle to the rear of the casualty vehicle should the breakdown vehicle park in front of the casualty vehicle. In such situations, the operator should plan the work to minimise the period for which breakdown vehicle is in this position.

The associated risk assessment should consider moving the casualty vehicle to a place of safety before attempting remobilisation if the preparation and loading of the casualty vehicle for removal can be achieved more rapidly than remobilisation.

We will also consider the addition of a note in Annex B section B1 of PAS 43 indicating the desirability of carrying battery packs and jump leads where the duty of the breakdown vehicle includes remobilisation of vehicles with flat batteries and the minimum recommended length of jump leads.