Stafford Haulier's Vehicle Suspended
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THE licensing system must be upheld or else it would not have any practical significance, said the West Midland Licensing Authority, Mr. J. Else, when he suspended an A licence vehicle of
t'ons belonging to Mr. K. Evans, of Stafford, at Hanley on Tuesday. Mr. Evans had been called to a public inquiry under Section 178 of the 1960 Road Traffic Act, because he had been carrying outside the normal user. In 1962 he had been cautioned about this.
Mr. G. C. Tinsdill, for Evans, said that the vehicle was licensed to carry metal valves and castings for the Audco Engineering Co. Ltd. However, this work had fluctuated.
In evidence, Evans said that the vehicle had been at the disposal of the Audco Co. ever since he had acquired it. When the work had fluctuated he had some times used the vehicle in conjunction with the remainder of the fleet to carry goods for regular customers. He had not tried to obtain any new customers and had not deliberately decided to operate outside his conditions.
Mr. Tinsdill submitted that fundamentally Evans was an honest man who had been faced with a dilemma. He knew that he should have done something about the position, but in the background he had had the idea that the customers would pick up. The caution from the Licensing Authority had not been recklessly disregarded. A new application had been made, he added.
Mr. Else suspended the vehicle for seven weeks until the end of January and also granted a new licence to start in February.