TruckPol could be funded by fee system by uerren Hayes
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A ROAD HAULAGE Association (RHA) survey has found overwhelming support among its members for anti-crime initiative TruckPol to be funded by operators paying a subscription fee.
The online poll of about 100 RHA members found the majority backed proposals for operators to pay a "small charge" for accessing information on haulage-related crime collated by the new TruckPol service once it is fully operational later in the year.
Survey respondents suggested a range of amounts for what a reasonable TruckPol subscription fee might be: there was strong support for a £100 annual charge; others were prepared to pay £15 to £30 a month; while some suggested fees could be built into the membership pricing structure.
Backing for a fee-based system is a boost for the RHA in its negotiations with the Business Crime Intelligence Bureau (BCIB) – the not-for-profit, police-led body that is to oversee the running of TruckPol – over how the new service will be funded and what level of financial support is expected from the industry.
Plans to have TruckPol fully operational by April were shelved after the RHA and BCIB couldn't agree how the service should be funded (CM 21 March).
The BCIB has now proposed that membership bodies and trade associations, such as the RHA, should pay £25,000 annually to fund TruckPol, while individual companies and organisations that want to access the service should pay £5,000.
RHA security manager Chrys Rampley said the proposed amounts "went down OK" with the TruckPol working group it has set up to clarify what operators want from the new service, but added this was just one possibility being looked at and that no decisions had been made.