Ombudsman dismisses licensing complaint
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• The Ombudsman, Sir Alan Marre, has dismissed a complaint of maladministration of the system of licensing hgv, operators and drivers.
The complaint arose out of an application to licence a horse-box to operate a horse collection service.
Allegations included "high-handed" attitudes by a traffic examiner and failure by DOE officials to investigate complaints adequately.
The complainant objected to the procedure under which it was necessary, as a result of a change of address, to make a completely fresh application for a licence to operate the horse-box to his new traffic area office.
He argued that the system should be revised and arrangements made for transferring operators' licences from one traffic area to another automatically following a change of address. The Ombudsman said the present system of licensing goods vehicle operators, under the 1968 Transport Act, was designed to improve road safety by enforcing the safe operation and proper maintenance of goods vehicles.
The regulations allowed a vehicle to be operated for a period of three months from a base outside the traffic area in which it was licensed but after that period a fresh licence had to be obtained.
A fresh licence also had to be obtained if there was any change in the partnership of a company holding a licence, as there was in this case.
Sir Alan found, however, that it had not been established that the traffic examiner made any inquiries which he was not entitled to make, nor did he make them in an unreasonable way.