Want to swap an old truck for a new life?
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Last week Commercial Motor reported on a possible scheme to help struggling hauliers leave the industry by paying them for their old trucks. John O'Donnell hears reactions from those who might benefit.
MI Hauliers have blasted a plan being considered by ministers to encourage operators to quit the industry by paying them an allowance to scrap their old trucks.
The scheme is the work of Lord Bill Bradshaw, who wants to give hauliers money on condition that they quit the haulage industry. He says this will solve the problem of over-capacity in the industry with too many hauliers competing for the same work and driving down rates for everyone else.
Bradshaw says: "I would offer people the opportunity to scrap an old lorry on the condition that they left the industry. It is something that would benefit the hard-working small haulier. It is a way of saying to him 'If you find this industry is too tough a scrappage allowance could allow you to get out with capital rather than struggle on until you end up bankrupt': Bradshaw, who is a member of the commission for integrated transport that advises the government, says the plan would take the pressure off operators that decided to stick it out. He believes that an industry with fewer operators would boost transport prices.
But trucking firms say it is unlikely that his scheme would work. Many are predicting that the government's allowance would not be sufficient to allow them to close their doors.
Unrealistic
John Douce, who jointly owns TH Douce & Sons in Cornwall, says: "What is Tony Blair going to give you for an old motor? They are worth nothing. He vould have to be very generous. We would have to have £20,000 a truck or more just to walk out and break even—and even with that you would not have capital for anything else.
"But I cannot see him giving away money like that. He will probably give us a couple of grand and say 'Get out of haulage'."
Douce says cutting fuel tax is still the only solution to hauliers' problems: "What we need is 26p off a litre of diesel." Chris Broad, a partner in Cornish haulier Roy Broad & Sons. agrees that the scheme is unlikely to be generous enough. But he does think it is a step in the right direction, Broad says: "There is a need for that type of scheme—we would certainly look at it. If you look over the years in farming and fishing everybody has had handouts, but the haulage industry has been hammered all the way through," Broad agrees with Douce on the amount of money needed to make the scheme work, but he is not hopeful: "Something like £20,000 a truck to dispose of the vehicles and pay redundancies would tempt a lot of people. But I don't see it happening."
Unappealing
Even if the government does get the scheme up and running many hauliers are unlikely to take the cash offer, according to the Bank of Scotland. One bank manager, who has extensive dealings with hauliers, says many would struggle to find alternative work. And he says this will stop them taking the money and running.
"Hauliers are just accustomed to what they do. You might say they can get retrained but retrained for what? Not everybody wants to be working in a call centre when they have been used to the freedom of the open road. And in the event that they don't get employment how long will the government's money last them?" He that they may not be eligil social security benefits.
The manager says th realistic option for sma pany owners leaving the in is to drive for someone els he thinks that this may be pealing: "The first qi hauliers are going to ask i are they going to do? W find atternative work? Th probably still end up in the try but working for son else. No matter how diffic times are, the idea of orders again is not attracti The bank manager the government that s scheme may not work as the cash grants system tc Scottish fishermen in th 1990s. He says: "Then tt was to remove the licenc the fisherman to prote quotas. There was a re pose. But this is differer haulage somebody has to do the work. You still get the supermarkets f the raw material to the facturer. So who Is goinj it? I think it just opens th gates for more work to h by our continental friend Whether or not the 5 to help hauliers leave thE try ever sees the light two things are certai money is unlikely to be and there will remain a of disgruntled operator5 ging to make a profit 1 little fault of their own.