‘Lost’ card was used by Limerick-based truck driver more than 130 times, court told
The owner of the company, Eamonn Barrett, accepted he ‘should have been more diligent’ in how he monitored the drivers and the movement of trucks
A LIMERICK-based transport company was fined €5,000 after it admitted multiple breaches of safety regulations, including permitting drivers to drive excessive hours.
Eamonn Barrett International Transport Limited was prosecuted before Newcastle West District Court arising from an investigation which was launched just over 12 months ago.
The company, which has a registered address at Kilbeha, Askeaton, pleaded guilty to seven sample charges out of the 18 before the court.
Solicitor Aidan Judge, representing the Road Safety Authority, told Judge Valerie Corcoran the guilty plea was accepted on the basis that full facts would be outlined to the court.
An inspector with the RSA said an investigation was launched after a vehicle owned by the company was stopped on September 1, 2025 at a routine checkpoint on the outskirts of Athlone, County Westmeath.
He said the vehicle was inspected and the driver was asked to present his driver card. It was subsequently established that the card had been reported as being lost a year earlier and that it was not valid on the date in question.
RSA inspectors visited the offices of Eamonn Barrett International Transport in January of this year where they spoke to the owner and examined various documentation and records.
Judge Corcoran was told multiple breaches of regulations were identified including a failure by the company to download tachograph data, despite being legally obliged to do so.
Several instances of drivers exceeding their permitted daily driving limits were also identified and it was established that the driver card presented in Athlone had been used 131 times over a six month period, after it was reported as missing.
Giving evidence, the owner of the company, Eamonn Barrett, accepted he “should have been more diligent” in how he monitored the drivers and the movement of trucks.
He said the breaches occurred shortly after an office manager left the company and moved to Australia.
“It was difficult to replace her and I tried to manage as best as possible,” he said.
Mr Barrett told solicitor Eamonn Dillon he has since taken action to rectify matters, including engaging a third-party supplier to download and analyse all tachograph data.
Three drivers who were specifically identified during the RSA investigation no longer work for the company, he added.
Imposing sentence, Judge Corcoran said she had to take the breaches seriously but she accepted there was strong mitigation in the case.