RHA stops Purchase
Page 12
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• Road Haulage Association ' opposition has led to West Midland Licensing Authority Ronald Jackson's refusal of a bid for a new international licence for 12 vehicles and 10 trailers by A Purchase Ltd of Brierley Hill.
The RHA said the company is not fit to hold a licence as a director, Anthony Purchase, is a director of Carrycroft Ltd, a company which has been prosecuted for 36 offences of operating vehicles without excise licences, one of operating a vehicle without an operator's licence and five offences of failing to produce records. That case was adjourned sine die in December by Dudley magistrates.
For the company, Michael Carless said the application was in succession to a licence granted to Carrycroft in 1983, itself in succession to a licence granted to A Purchase Ltd in 1982.
A Purchase Ltd ceased to trade in 1983.
Anthony Purchase owned the premises and he underwrote the operation of the vehicles. It was considered commercially proper at that time that Carrycroft be brought into existence to operate the vehicles.
A Purchase Ltd was convicted of using a vehicle without an excise licence at Dunstable in November 1983 and three years ago Anthony Purchase was convicted at Dudley magistrates of handling stolen tax discs.
Many of Carrycroft's customers went out of business in the recession, but the company carried on trading at the expense of the vehicle licensing office.
It was not a deliberate policy not to tax vehicles, but when excise licences ran out they were not renewed.
Financial troubles caused the company to cease to trade in September 1985. It was liquidated in December 1985.
In evidence, Anthony Purchase agreed that he was already considering liquidation of Carrycroft in September when he wrote a letter with the application saying that it was just a change of name.
Questioned by Geoffrey Williams for the RHA, Purchase agreed he had not declared convictions in 1984 for a defective tyre and in 1985 for defective washers, headlamps and for having no plating and test certificates.
He agreed that an emergency resolution for the winding up of Carrycroft was passed two days before the company was due to appear before the Dudley magistrates.
Purchase said that Carrycroft had sub-contracted well over £48,000 worth of work to RHA members. Although the company was not paid by its customers, the RHA members were all paid out. It had been a question of paying either the road tax or the sub-contractors.
Traffic examiner Malcolm Seward said that since A Purchase Ltd was granted an interirn licence in October, there had been 112 occasioi when eight vehicles had be used without valid excise licences.
In the case of three vehicles, there were gaps ir the tachograph records for tances of 2,500km, 2,500kn and 4,000Iun respectively, which indicated further use without excise licences.
Williams suggested that C rycroft had been liquidated 1
avoid the Dudley proceeding and that Purchase had writti to the LA to get an interim licence before the Carrycrof licence was revoked.
Refusing the application, Jackson said he was satisfiec that Purchase is not a fit an proper person to be involvel in any company that applies an operator's licence.