Late coaches blamed for Randall collapse
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SHUTTLE coach operator Derek Randall Enterprises slates late delivery of coaches as one of the major reasons for its failure. It ceased trading on September 4, leaving a deficit estimated to be 1:1.9 million.
The directors of the company say the coach delivery problem arose after an oral agreement was said to have been reached with a coach supplier for new coaches to be exchanged with older vehicles on a time scale that would allow Randall to reduce its debt to finance companies during the winter period.
Part of this agreement involved an order for 24 coaches with delivery promised for January 1984. It is claimed that the first coach did not arrive until March 1984 and that the last of the batch was not delivered until November.
As a result, the company incurred heavy interest and finance charges during the winter and had to continue running older and more expensive-to-maintain coaches in the summer which led to significant trading losses.
The delivery delays were also blamed for hire purchase companies' unwillingness to commit further funds for vehicle replacement. It had to lease coaches at a greater cost.
Excessive competitiveness in the market was also blamed for the failure. The directors claim that the costs of new coaches rose sevenfold from 1976, but revenue earned only doubled in the same period.