Authority Seeks Hauliers' Help in 'Take-over' Bids
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Mr. Muir Condemns the Selling of Licences THE Metropolitan Licensing Authority, Mr. D. I. R. Muir, has appealed to hauliers to assist him in "weeding out" applications to take over businesses which they know to be not genuine. He did this when, at a public inquiry last Monday, he called before him two applicants for B licences—W. Stokes and Co., of Luton, and N. J. Taaffe, of Chalfont St. Giles (Bucks)—both of whom stated that they were taking over businesses and paying £200 for " goodwill " for the licences if their applications were granted.
For W. Stokes and Co., Mr. H. Burnett told Mr. Muir that the application was made in connection with a B licence for one vehicle granted to a Mr. F. G. Smith, which was due to expire in March, 1964, authorizing the carriage of various commodities within 10 miles of Luton. The work which Smith had done under the licence was almost entirely under the terms of a contract with Skefco Ball Bearing Co. Ltd. Mr. Smith became ill in April, 1961, and the applicant had carried out the work by using his own B-licensed vehicles and by hiring.
In the memorandum for sale, Mr. Stokes had agreed to pay Mr. Smith £200 for the goodwill of the business provided the licence was granted.
The applicant, asked by Mr. Muir why he had agreed to pay £200, said that it was to obtain a contract from Skefco.
Mr. Muir: "But they are perfectly willing to employ you and have been employing you for the last two years." Mr. Stokes replied that what he really wanted was the licence.
The second applicant, Mr. N. J. Taaffe, told the Authority that he was applying for a new B licence on the non-renewal of one previously granted to R. J. Philbey. In support he had forwarded a statement to the Authority which contained a report from a firm of chartered accountants stating that the B licence would be well worth £200 "since they arc in demand and also difficult to obtain ". Asked why he thought he should pay £200 for a new licence, Mr. Taaffe said that he thought it was worth it" because an application could be refused.
Giving a joint decision, Mr. Muir said that it was sometimes alleged that the licensing system worked against a small man in favour of the " big guns" in the industry. He believed this to be wholly untrue Nevertheless, the small operator was too often at a serious disadvantage —" because he seeks, obtains and acts on advice from sources which are manifestly incompetent to give it ".
If both applicants had sought advice from solicitors who had any knowledge at all of the Road Traffic Act and licensing procedure, they would have saved themselves a great deal of money. The straight-forward course was for the applicants to have made an application with the support of customers. "The cost," continued Mr. Muir, " would have been not £200, but £5," which was the fee for the licence.
Over and over again, Mr. Muir continued, he had said that carriers' licences were not for sale. Anyone who advised in a contrary sense was either acting in good faith in ignorance of the law, or was giving wrong advice presumably with dishonest intentions. Where an established business was taken over and a bargain made for vehicles and goodwill, both parties should clearly understand that the licences were not negotiable assets and did not form part of the goodwill.
Mr. Muir said that he had instructed
his office to list for public inquiry all cases which gave rise to suspicion that a licence had been sold, in the hope that if he continued to condemn the practice, potential licensees would in time, be warned. He could not, however, investigate the bona fides of all such applications, and where he was in doubt, he would publish them in Applications and Decisions "in the hope that when responsible hauliers see applications to take over businesses which they know to be either non-existent or moribund, they will exercise their statutory rights of objection and thus prevent the misuse of the licensing system which I know is practised ".
Mr. Muir granted both applications" the applicants," he said, "have been misled as to the best way of getting what they want".