Fined haulier celebrates first successful defence
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4 by Melanie Hammond
The haulage industry breathed a sigh of relief this week after the first civil penalty against a driver and a haulier caught carrying illegal immigrants was wiped out.
This is the first successful appeal since the legislation was introduced in April—it will calm increasing fears that the fines could not be challenged.
Tiptree, Essex-based BT Cullum et. Son and driver Colin Locke avoided a £10,000 fine after immigration authorities found that the driver had made every possible check to ensure he was not carrying "clandestine entrants".
Locke was issued with a penalty notice when immigration officers at the Coquelles Eurotunnel terminal found five illegal immigrants in his sealed trailer which was carrying air conditioning equipment.
The TIR cord had been cut and resealed with the repair hidden behind a 0ring. Tony Cullum believes the stowaways broke into the trailer at a truckstop on the French side of the Belgian border.
While the victory will come as a relief to hauliers, Cullum's solicitor, Ian Rothera, says the penalty should never have been imposed in the first place. "The immigration officers didn't ask to see the documents," he points out. "Had they asked for them at the time, they would have seen that there was an effective checking system in place.'' Cullum says the driver had been using checking forms supplied by the Freight Transport Association. Rothera warns: "This does not make us any more comfortable with the procedure which determines the success of an objection."
• The latest Home Office figures show that to date 203 penalty notices have been served, amounting to £2,26m; five have been paid and eight were issued to drivers of private cars.