Is the use of self-employed drivers legal ?
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THE OPINION of a traffic examiner, that the use of selfemployed drivers to drive the vehicles of a St Helens haulier meant that the vehicles were being operated without the authority of an 0 licence, was disputed before the North Western LA, Mr R. D. Hutchings, at Manchester last Friday.
Consett Haulage (St Helens) Ltd was seeking a new 0 licence for six vehicles and seven trailers, in substitution for a similar licence held by Mr N. A. Consett, trading as Consett Haulage.
Mr H. Ratcliffe, a traffic examiner, said he had interviewed Mr Consett in April. The drivers' records were reasonably well kept. He asked to see the wages book and he was told that there was not one. Cards were later produced which showed gross payments to drivers, without any deductions. Mr Ratcliffe said he was told the drivers were responsible for their own tax, cards and things like that. It appeared that the drivers were self-employed and if this was so the vehicles were being operated without authority.
Mr Consett said until early this year he had made use of self-employed drivers. However, since the traffic examiner had raised doubts about the legality of the system, he had employed them in the normal way arid could produce his wages book if it was required.
Convictions in regard to 28 drivers' records offences in March, 1974, had arisen because he was operating more vehicles than he could cope with at the time. As a result he had undertaken only random checks of the drivers' records, instead of examining each one.
Questioned by Mr Hutchings, Mr Consett said he had not known that the practice of using self-employed drivers was of doubtful legality. He knew of many hauliers who operated a similar system. Mr Hutchings said that although he was prepared to make a grant, in the light of the evidence given, it was his view that ignorance of the law was an indication that an operator was not fit to hold a licence.
For the company, Mr J. A. Backhouse argued that it was lawful for an operator to employ a driver as an agent. Section 92 (2) of the Transport Act stated ". . . the person whose servant or agent the driver is, shall be deemed to be the person using the vehicle. . . ." The applicant's use of self-employed drivers was not in breach of the Transport Act, although he might be in some difficulty since the tightening of the regulations in regard to the "lump." There were many perfectly proper agencies which hired out drivers to hauliers.
Mr Hutchings granted the application for a five-year period.