Written question asked by Ian Gibson (Labour) on Thursday, 8 June 2000, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 15 June 2000. It was answered by Keith Hill (Labour) on Thursday, 15 June 2000 on behalf of the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions.

Dept of the Environment Transport and the Regions

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, what statistics he collects about bus accidents involving loose wheels.

Answer: Dr. Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what statistics he collects about bus accidents involving loose wheels. [125737] Mr. Hill: Currently, all Vehicle Examiners who receive a request from the police to inspect vehicles that have been involved in a road traffic accident are required to complete a comprehensive report to help determine whether defects on the vehicle caused or contributed to the reason for the accident or to the severity of any injuries. Most of the requests are for examinations of heavy vehicles. A copy of the report goes to the police while another is sent to the VI Vehicle Safety Branch in Bristol. The information in the report is entered into the Inspectorate's "accidents" database which contains details of any faults or defects found on the vehicles examined, for example, wheel loss or brake failure. Vehicle Safety Branch are currently responsible for managing the database, on behalf of DETR's Vehicle Standards and Engineering Division. Since 1991, when the database was last revised, there have been 122 reported incidents of wheel loss on public service or large passenger vehicles above 16 passenger seats capacity, and four reported incidents on mini-buses with between nine and 16 passenger seats.

Secondary information