Hungarians needed EU licences
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A Stockport international haulage company, which used Hungarian drivers to get round visa problems in Eastern Europe has had its licence suspended for a fortnight.
Hazel Grove, Stockport-based RJ International Freight was called before North Western Traffic Commissioner Beverley Bell. The company holds an international licence for four vehicles and four trailers with two vehicles and two trailers in possession. Traffic Examiner Karen Farr said that in March she requested the tachograph charts from January. They were not received by the deadline. When she spoke to director and transport manager John Dowsett, he said that the charts were kept in Hungary and he was trying to get them returned. She visited the company in May and Dowsett said the vehicles were being driven by Hungarian nationals who were employed by an agency in Hungary.
Farr pointed out that to drive UK-registered vehicles the drivers must have EU driving licences, which Dowsett said they held. But when a vehicle was stopped, driver Gattyan Sandor was only able to produce a Hungarian driving licence.
Dowsed had promised to fax copies of the drivers' EU licences to Farr, but these had not been received. Dowsett then produced charts for one vehicle. A check or 28 charts revealed seven offences involving insufficient breaks and rest. Farr believed that the company had shifted responsibility for hours
and records to the Hungarian agents and had little or no control over the drivers.
Dowsett said that initially the firm had used British drivers, but Russian visa requirements were delaying loads for about a week. They were approached by East West Trucks of Hungary, one of the company's subcontractors, who said they could put drivers with EU licences in the company's vehicles.
When the company requested copies of the driving licences, the agency told it that the drivers' EC licences had expired, said Dowsett. it had now effectively dispensed with the agency's services. The vehicles were currently on their way back to Hungary and British drivers would be sent out to repatriate the vehicles. The company was currently advertising for drivers with EC licences and in future it would control the drivers itself.
Suspending the licence, the TC said it was not sufficient to simply rely upon a third party arrangement, no matter haw good that relationship was.