'Doubling-up' costs firm and drivers £330
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• A Leeds removal firm and three of its drivers were fined a total of £330 at Leeds City magistrates' court on Tuesday as the result of a number of drivers' hours offences committed between June 6 and September 29 last year.
Prosecuting for the DoE, Mr Michael Patterson said that the three drivers, two of whom had since left the company, Holdsworth Removals Ltd, had committed a total of 10 offences, mainly as a result of "doubling up" on long journeys. Mr Patterson explained that on certain journeys drivers had been in the habit of travelling in pairs with one acting as mate and reversing duties on the return trip. However, in the instance which led to the charges only the time actually spent driving had been recorded, although the round journeys had exceeded the statutory 121 hours "off and on" duty period. In their evidence, the drivers, Mr A. Barker, Mr J. McGough and Mr C. Nevill, of Leeds, stated that they had not been aware that it had been necessary for them to record details of all the times spent on duty, but admitted that they had gained financially through the "doubling-up" system.
The magistrates fined Holdsworth Removals Ltd a total of £180 after pleading guilty to nine charges of failing to cause records to be kept and allowing the three drivers to exceed permitted hours. Mr Barker was fined a total of £60 on two charges of exceeding permitted hours and two charges of failing to keep a current record, Mr McGough also fined £60 on similar charges and Mr Nevill fined £30 on one charge of exceeding permitted hours and one charge of failing to keep a current record.