What is the primary duty?
It is the duty on each party in the chain of responsibility (CoR) for a heavy
vehicle to ensure, insofar as is reasonably practicable, the safety
of the party’s transport activities relating to the vehicle.
The primary duty is a proactive one, expressed as a duty which is personal to each party in the CoR. This duty is a non-delegable duty of care.
The primary duty creates a broad general duty which, although commonly related to a contravention of the mass, dimension,
loading, speed, fatigue or vehicle maintenance provisions of the HVNL, is not limited to these contraventions.
Failing to comply with the primary duty creates a safety risk and triggers offences, categorised by severity as category 1,
category 2 or category 3.
Category 1, 2 and 3 offences are risk based offences, not outcome-based offences. The prosecution does not need to prove that there was a manifestation of the safety risk, that there was a near miss or an actual event. The prosecution does
not need to prove a causal link to make out a primary duty offence. In order to satisfy a category 1 or 2 offence, the offence
is complete once a risk of death, serious injury or illness is in existence and a person is proximate to it. In order to satisfy a category 3 offence, a person need only be exposed to a safety
risk. However, the manifestation of the safety risk will generally be used as evidence of the existence of the safety risk.
We can help you understand and to manage your obligations under the HVNL.