ecent changes to the Heavy Vehicle National Law mean that Chain of Responsibility obligations are now interpreted in the same way as general obligations under Workplace Health and Safety legislation (see related article). Since then, there has been significant confusion amongst Australian businesses as to how the laws apply to them, as well as large amount of misinformation spread among the transport industry. The following webinar will provide you with a clear explanation on the impact of these changes, and how they affect all parties to the Chain including distributors, transporters and receivers of goods. Better understand your obligations as a party in the chain, avoid over complicating your processes, and target your efforts where they are needed most to support compliance and best practice management of transport related safety.

1. Heavy Vehicle National Law
Overview and Application

2. HVNL
• Applies to employers who are involved in the
operation of heavy vehicles as an employer or
who engage contractors who operate heavy
vehicles
• Heavy vehicles > 4.5 GVM
• Fatigue regulated heavy vehicle > 12 GVM
• Regulates
• Vehicle standards
• Mass and dimension of loads
• Driver fatigue
• Intelligent access systems

3. Key Elements
• Vehicle Standards –
• Maintenance
• Fit for purpose
• Mass and dimension
• Loading within limits
• Load restraint
• Limiting road access to oversized vehicles
• Fatigue regulated heavy vehicles (12 GVM and
over)
• Maximum work and minimum rest
requirements
• Record keeping/ work diaries
• Chain of Responsibility

4. COR Overview
Chapter 1 – 26 C Safety Duties
• targeted at everyone involved in heavy vehicle transport but
only to the extent that they have control/ or real influence
• Purpose – to make sure drivers of heavy vehicles are not
encouraged, coerced or forced to engage in unsafe practices
which pose a risk to them or the public.
• Proactive – prevent risks associated with heavy vehicle
operations arising from your operations and matters over
which you have control
Who are the duties targeted at?
• Distributors of goods
• Transport operators (not drivers per se)
• Receivers of goods
• Decision makers (Officers)
• NOT DRIVERS

5. What is
Happening &
What Does it
Mean
The HVNL is now aligned with Workplace Health
and Safety legislation
WHS Duty - The employer (including employers in
the transport industry) should identify all the
circumstances in which his/her employees could
be at risk whilst at work, and all the
circumstances in which anyone else could be at
risk as a result of anything done in his business.
HVNL Duty – Each party in the chain of
responsibility i.e. involved in a transport activity
for a heavy vehicle must ensure, so far as is
reasonably practicable, the safety of the party’s
transport activities relating to the vehicle.

6. Shared
Obligation –
What Does It
Really Mean
• The shared obligation is to make sure you don't
do anything which forces another party in the
chain to engage in unsafe practices
• It is not about interfering in another parties
operations which you are not involved in
• COR is about obligations owed to drivers who
are impacted by your operations.
• The changes give teeth to NHVR to prosecute
parties who contribute to heavy vehicle
incidents who are not directly involved in
operation of the vehicle.

7. COR – For discussion
Consignors TRANSPORT Consignee
What HV Risks (outside your own operational risks)
Do You Have Control or Influence over?

8. Consignor -
Activities
• Engages Transport Operator
• Consigns goods for transport
• Packs and loads
• Schedules delivery
• *includes wharf transfer/ freight forwarding
HV Safety matters over which you have control or
influence
• Overloading
• Loading dangerous goods
• Scheduling to force speeding / fatigue
• Wait times increasing fatigue

9. Transport
Operators -
Activities
• loads
• Transports
• Delivers goods
HV Safety Matters Over Which You have Control
or influence
• Vehicle safety
• Driver fitness
• Driver competence
• Load restraint
• Mass and dimension

10. Consignee -
Activities
• Unloading goods
HV Safety Matters Over Which You have Control
or influence
• Wait times (fatigue/ speed)

11. A Limitation to both WHS and HVNL Duty
The obligation to eliminate or
reduce risk so far as is reasonably
practicable is qualified by the
capacity to influence and control
the conduct of others. Note this is
real control and influence.
The capacity to influence and
control another party is limited by
the cost and effort of controlling
and directing independent
contractors in their safety
arrangements.

12. So what are
parties in the
chain required
to do -
Demonstrate
due diligence
• Engage contractors with a good reputation
• Ask the right questions
• Don’t collect copious paper work
• Clearly establish the scope of work and
responsibilities of each party for safety
• Understand obligations retained as a principle
contactors
• Site safety
• manage safety risks from own operations
• Consider how your operations pose risk to drivers
• Direct contractors to remedy safety concerns
without directing how this is to be done.

13. What Should I
ask?
• We are interested in the what not the how.
• Transport Operators
• Are your drivers licensed?
• Are your drivers competent in load restraint and mass
management?
• Are your drivers fit for work?
• Are your vehicles safe and fit for purpose?
• Others
• Are your work processes designed to support drivers to -
• Observe speed limits
• Comply with road rules
• Maintain fitness to work
• Load within vehicle limits
• Correctly restrain loads

14. GET YOUR OWN BACKYARD IN ORDER…..
• Have a good hard look at your operations
• Remove operations which result in drivers
(deliberate or systemic) engaging in unsafe acts.
• COR duties does not extend liability for
operations of others in the chain e.g. a freight
forwarder is not responsible for vehicle
maintenance or licensing of a contracted
transport operator.

15. But there’s more…….
“The current law does not reflect best practice,”
“It is onerous for industry, it is incredibly difficult for the regulator to
administer, it’s not truly national, it’s overly prescriptive and it’s
complicated to navigate”.
SO THE HVNL IS TO BE REVIEWED!
To align it with WHS principles .. Performance vs prescription

16. One option ……
• Develop and implement harmonised HV regulation – Safe Work Australia
• Transfer regulation to State WHS Regulators – create transport division
• Clarify Enforcement
• WOHS Regulator – HV Division – health and safety of drivers and others arising from
transport operations
• COR
• Fatigue
• Vehicle standards
• Mass and dimension as it relates to health and safety
• VicRoads – proper road use and compliance
• Police – criminal conduct on the road (drink driving, speeding, not workplace related)

17. Contact
• Sue Bottrell
• Phone: 0431 975 286
• Email: sue@sossafetyandlegal.com.au