Haulier Will Lose Business With Authority's Refusal to Alter Base
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JHE refusal of an application for a change of base, made by Mr. Andrew Geddes, Charleston, Nigg, Aberdeen, at Aberdeen last week, had the effect of putting him out of business as a haulier.
He sought to transfer three special-A vehicles from Edinburgh and two Alicensed vehicles from Airdrie to a new base at Aberdeen, but admitted that special-A-licensed vehicles had not been .operated from the declared base and that the weights of two vehicles had been increased without authority.
Giving decision, Mr. Alex Robertson, Scottish Deputy Licensing Authority, recalled that on September 23 last year Mr. Geddes had been called to show why his licences should not be revoked as a result of frequent breaches of their conditions.
" On that occasion," said Mr. Robertson, I revoked his only special-A licence based in Aberdeen. This revocation does not appear to have had the dosired effect and Mr. Geddes continues to ignore provisions of the Acts governing operational goods vehicles."
Mr. Geddes said that he had acquired the share capital of Thomas Weir and Co., Ltd., in February, 1959. The assets included the A licence, but the company had gone into liquidation soon afterwards, when it was discovered that a large debt was still outstanding. The licence was transferred to the name of the liquidator, but Mr. Geddes continued to operate the vehicles from Aberdeen. He told the Authority that he was unaware that the normal user for the vehicles was " peats in Scotland and Northern England and building materials within 25 miles of Airdrie."
Mr. Robertson produced extracts froni drivers' records to show that the vehicles had carried agricultural produce and timber from Aberdeen to places throughout England. It was also disclosed that Mr. Geddes had recently been fined for operating one of the Weir vehicles without a licence.
Nineteen objectors included the British Transport Commission. Only one customer, a timber merchant of Rothrnary, supported the application.
The effect of Mr. Robertson's decision is that Mr. Geddes cannot legally operate the two vehicles authorized on the Weir licence. The application, to transfer the three vehicles on special A licences to A licence with an Edinburgh base, was made for the sole purpose of permitting operation after the expiry of the specialA licences.
Mr. W. F. Quin, Scottish Licensing Authority, had deferred his decision on the application to transfer the vehicles from special A to A licence pending the hearing of the application to base vehicles in Aberdeen.