The Old Problem—Money
Page 40
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FINANCE is one of the main problems of the denationalization of long-distance road haulage. The Road Haulage Disposal Board are determined to obtain the highest possible prices, which implies that they attach some weight to the value of the special A licences that accompany transport units. If, following the precedent created by the 1947 Act, the value of these licences were assessed at ,f70 per ton of payload capacity, the buyer of a modest unit of four 5-ton vehicles would have to find £1,400 apart from a fair valuation of the tangible assets.
Unfortunately, he is unlikely to be able to borrow any part of that additional sum, at least through the normal channels. The organization set up by the Road Haulage Association and the United Dominions Trust, Ltd., to finance the purchase of transport units will normally advance two-thirds of the value of the assets and, in practice, the purchaser will probably have to find at the outset about half the total cost of the unit.
That is a heavy burden for a small man to bear. The finance organization, however, does not wish to encourage men of straw to enter the industry and, still more to the point, is not willing to take undue risks, That is an understandable attitude, but it takes no account of the man with little capital who is anxious to work hard to succeed in his own business.
It is obvious that few drivers will be able to become their own masters by buying transport units. Only men with substantial liquid resources will succeed in enjoying the fruits of denationalization.