Concern over Dual Carriage cash flow
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MI by Sally Nash
Confusion surrounds the financial future of Dual Carnage, part of Liverpool-based TAGroup Holdings.
A TA board meeting was held on Monday (18 October) to discuss freight broker Dual Carriage's position, according to Lee Parkinson, the son of TA
managing director John Parkinson.
However none of the directors was available for comment after the meeting.
The move follows complaints this week by several sub-contractors that they have not been paid for more than three months—some are owed tens of thousands of pounds and as many as 100 could be short of payments.
Many claim they were recently told that the company had a full "order book" and assurances were made that the cash-flow problem was only temporary.
But concern grew last week end that the company was close to collapse after drivers were told to fill up their tanks with diesel because of possible problems on the Monday.
Then the Leeds office at Dual Carriage, which was leased, closed. The manager says the staff had been "evicted out of the office".
Drivers and hauliers were left in the dark and even the manager of the Felixstowe office admits: We are waiting to be told by head office what is going on."
One sub-contractor, who wishes to remain anonymous, has instructed his solicitor to push for payment of 225,361 which remains outstanding.
Another, SJS Transport in Rotherham, was assured that Dual's problems were temporary and the banks were supportive.
Ella Sanderson, from SJS, is particularly angry with TA managing director John Parkinson, who is well known as a bornagain Christian. "I hope he rots in hell!" she says.
When TR took over Dual Carriage in 1995, buying it from the group Union International, which was in receivership, the firm was trading profitably and was expected to add about £9m to TA's turnover.