1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176 
Linkline subbies outraged at new company formation
Page 6
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
CM INVESTIGATION
• by Dominic Perry Outraged former subcontractors of a Stoke-based haulage group want to know how its directors could afford to be running a new transport outfit within days of it going into administration.
Additionally, a CM investigation has raised serious questions about the financial organisation at one of the group's subsidiaries, and revealed that a new firm created by its directors is running trucks without an Operator's Licence.
Harp Riley Holdings—which included Langton Storage and Transport, Stockton Haulage and Linkline Transport—went into administration on 2 June after it experienced financial difficulties, owing subbies hundreds of thousands of pounds. However within days of administrators from accountancy firm KPMG being called in, a new company—A&R Logistics—was operating from the same address.
Presently, both Linkline and Stockton Haulage have been wound down by the administrators, but Langton Storage has been kept running in the hope of attracting a buyer.
As well as working from the same premises at Bute St in Stoke, A&R Logistics has acquired a former Linkline contract and has hired trucks still in Linkline's livery.
The contract in question is with logistics firm Gist, working on the primary distribution side
of its Marks & Spencer contract. A Gist spokeswoman confirmed the commer cial relatiorship but insisted that Gist had checked A&R Logistics.
However, CM spotted former Linkline vehicles operating last week and a check with the West Midlands Traffic Area Office revealed that A&R Logistics has applied for a licence but has not yet been granted interim authority to operate.
Although Lionel Riley, a director at both Harp Riley and A&R Logistics, claims the latter does have an 0-licence, the TAO stands by its statement that although an application has been received, no interim licence has been granted.
There are also questions surrounding the firm's dealing with some of its subcontractors. Since Linkline's closure, at least two subbies working out of its Leeds depot have received letters from the factoring arm of the HSBC bank relating to money they allegedly owe.
This stems from the fact that the two subbies were paying Linkline for diesel and it appears that the firm was factoring these invoices. However, both subbies are adamant that the diesel bills, in some cases dating back to last September, had been settled with Linkline, either through cheque exchange or contra payments on their invoices. Both insist that the first they knew of HSBC's
involvement was when they received letters from the bank informing them that they owed substantial sums.
One subbie who has been hit for at least £130,000 by the company's collapse and the bill from HSBC blasts: "It's absolutely disgusting, there's no money in haulage no matter what you do—the margins are so narrow that even to lose £100 is a big knock. I'm fortunate in having other interests but unless I can keep working at this rate—B0 to 90 hours a week—it will send me to the wall by Christmas."
Riley was unable to offer an explanation for the involvement of HSBC. Managing director Adam Townsend was unable to be contacted. Riley adds: "There is no connection between Linkline and A&R Logistics. It is a totally separate company, we haven't just bought the assets and changed the name. "There is a vast amount of kit, trailers for example, that wasn't aken over. There is noth ing strange about it."