Former director fined 000k for falsifying driver records By Andrew
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Stone DANNY STEVEN Sawrij, the former director of Alba Transport, has been fined £300,000 and ordered to pay £150,000 costs for falsifying driver records after a hearing at Kirklees Magistrates' Court on Thursday 23 May.
Sawrij, from Halifax, was found guilty of failing to ensure that drivers kept proper records in driver record books and for failing to provide relevant documents to Vosa examiners when requested. This subsequently led to an investigation by the agency. Following the hearing, Heather Cruickshank, operations director at Vosa said:"Vosa will always take robust action against operators who deliberately flout the law, and there could be serious consequences as this case shows."
She added:"These operators not only take the risk of severe financial penalties from the courts, but they could also lose their good name and gain a criminal record."
Alba Transport was a subsidiary of waste management firm The Leo Group, until it appointed Armstrong Watson as an administrator in January 2012 before being wound-up by creditors later in the same month. Leo Group continues to trade.
In October 2011 Alba Transport was fined £32,000, plus £9,500 costs, after trucks operated by the firm spilt poultry offal on to roads, breaching health and safety regulations.
At the time lawyers for Alba Transport said the company had been in the process of upgrading its fleet so the problems could not happen again.
Alba Transport of Halifax is not to be confused with Alba Transport in Tonbridge, Kent.