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No centre no 0-licence
Page 14
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'Operating centre' was a transport cafe
A GREEK haulage firm which gave a transport café as its operating centre has lost its Operator's Licence for a string of maintenance offences, but has been invited to apply in another Traffic Area.
Loundros International was called before North Eastern Traffic Commissioner Tom Macartney at a Leeds disciplinary inquiry because of the TC's "grave and long-term" concern over its operating standards.
Vehicle examiner Keith Bostock said he was unable to examine any vehicles or trailers when he carried out an investigation in December. The principle shareholder, Xenofon Kopsidas, told him that one of the firm's two trucks had suffered engine failure in Germany and was on its way back to Greece, while the second was being used exclusively as a shunter at the company's Greek depot.
He was told that maintenance was carried out in Greece and that no vehicles were kept in the UK; the maintenance records were in the cab of the vehicle on its way back to Greece.
The owner of the declared operating centre, the transport cafe, had no knowledge of the company. Four immediate prohibitions,one delayed prohibition and a variation notice had been issued to the company's vehicles; the last time they were presented to the VI for inspection was November 2000.
Kopsidas said he owned 75% of the company, which was formed five ago with an English friend, John Perry, who later left for personalreasons.The vehicles spent half their time in Greece and half in England. They stopped at a site in Nottingham which was available as an operating centre, although he had not formalised this.
Transport manager Georgios Nikolaou,who lived in Nottingham. did not speak very good English and drove one of the vehicles.
They could not afford to maintain vehicles properly because spot fines in France and Germany were so heavy. Kopsidas said he now had a great chance to do everything correctly as a close friend, a Greek living in England running New Euro Line, had acquired new premises in Daventry where he was going to have a testing station.
Revoking the licence, the TC remarked that the number of prohibitions was high given how little time the trucks were in the UK.
He said the company could seek a fresh licence in the Eastern Traffic Area but warned that his colleague in the Eastern Area was very familiar with Greek operators and insisted on high standards.