Lies and record damn Dean
Page 18
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
Gainsborough-based Steven Dean has lost his appeal against the refusal of his bid for a new international licence, and his disqualification from holding or obtaining an 0-licence for five years.
Dean had applied for a licence authorising three vehicles and three trailers. That application was refused by Eastern Traffic Commissioner Geoffrey Simms on the grounds that Dean was not of good repute because of convictions recorded against him, his failure to disclose the convictions and his untruthful answers to questions in the licence application form.
The IC revoked the interim authority under which Dean was operating two vehicles and two trailers and made the disqualification order.
Dean had been the nominated transport manager of Dean Transport, a company whose licence was revoked in July 1994 because of convictions that had not been disclosed and a failure to satisfy the financial requirements.
In July 1995 Dean was convicted of three vehicle excise duty offences. In the November he was convicted of 20 offences of the use of rebated fuel; the fraudulent use of a registration mark, of a vehicle excise licence disc and of a plating certificate; the use of an 0-licence disc with intent to deceive; having no 0-licence, no vehicle excise licence, no insurance, no test certificate and no plating certificate; using a vehicle with defective steering; using a tachograph chart for more than 24
hours and failing to produce tachograph charts.
In March 1996 Hemswell Commercials, a company of which Dean was the sole director, went into creditors' liquidation.
In June 1998 Dean was convicted of two offences of using a vehicle without an 0-licence and without EC authorisation.
In the licence application form Dean had answered "No" to the questions about whether he had ever had an 0-licence revoked and whether he had been involved in a company that had gone into liquidation. In answer to the question about convictions he gave details of two speeding convictions in September 1995.
In dismissing Dean's appeal, the Transport Tribunal said the TC had found he had been repeatedly convicted of road transport offences. There was ample evidence on which the TO was entitled to come to that conclusion. Indeed, any other finding could be said to be perverse. Having made that finding, the TO was obliged to revoke the licence.
It was desirable to encourage an errant haulier to put his house in order as far as possible, said the tribunal.
On the disqualification, the tribunal added that there might have been a different outcome had Dean made a clean breast of his record.