Operator who loaned licence loses appeal
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Tribunal judge tells transport firm boss his conduct struck at the heart of the licensing system
roger.brown@rbi.co.uk CAMBRIDGESHIRE haulage irm PA Faulkner Sub-Contract Transport has had its appeal against the revocation of its O-licence for loaning out licence discs thrown out.
Upper Tribunal Judge Mark Hinchliffe also upheld the decision by Eastern Area Trafic Commissioner (TC) Richard Turitt that Paul Faulkner, boss of the Wisbech-based business, should lose his repute. Turitt took the decision at a joint public inquiry (PI) last September saying that Faulkner’s conduct “struck at the heart of the operators’ licensing system”.
The TC was told that Faulkner, who was authorised for three vehicles, had made an arrangement to loan the disc for one of them to Kevin Elsey.
Elsey had a previous licence revoked at a 2008 PI following a VOSA tacho investigation into 7,000km of missing mileage. The arrangement to loan the disc meant Faulkner did not dictate the work the vehicle was doing and had no control over the driver. In return for the loan of the disc, Elsey passed on jobs at the Lamb Weston potato processing facility in Wisbech to Faulkner to carry out using his other vehicles.
The same PI was also told that during February and March 2010, Steven Smith of Wisbech – who had stopped trading as SJS Trucking in November 2009 – allowed his licence to be used by Elsey for a £50-a-week payment.
Turitt ruled that Elsey and Smith had also lost their repute and revoked Smith’s licence.
In his appeal, Faulkner argued that the TC had failed to properly consider that he had voluntarily brought the illegal arrangements with Elsey to an end.
He also argued that the TC should have given greater weight to his many years as an operator.
However, Judge Hinchliffe said: “An experienced operator and transport manager should surely know better than to allow a speciied vehicle, and a disc, to be used in the way that happened here.” The revocation of the PA Faulkner licence is due to come into effect on 25 February.