1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194 
Company director banned
Page 31
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
A Lincolnshire firm which was a front for a "very bad operator' loses its licence for three years to protect public and legitimate operators.
A LINCOLNSHIRE operator lost its licence after its operation was revealed as a front for a very bad operator" who had been banned several years ago because he was a danger to the public and a threat to legitimate operators.
Eastern Traffic Commissioner Geoffrey Simms revoked the licence of Lincolnshire Haulage (2003). The company and its sole director Gareth Palmer were disqualified from holding an 0-licence for three years. The TC considered its licence application had been a front for Steven Dean, an operator he disqualified in July 1999 for five years in a decision subsequently upheld by the Transport Tribunal.
Lincolnshire Haulage, whose registered office was Europa Way, Stallingborough, Grimsby, did not attend the Cambridge disciplinary inquiry. It held a licence for four vehicles and four trailers with an operating centre located at PAC Commercials premises, of Market Rasen. The nominated transport manager was the proprietor of PAC Commercials, Philip Richards. That company had recently surrendered its own licence.
ltaffic examiner Philip Lapczuk considered that use as an operating centre by both Lincolnshire Haulage and Dean of the Stallingborough premises was more than a coincidence. Lincolnshire Haulage's bank statements bore Dean's home address. which suggested Dean was financing the operation. After visiting Richards, he believed his dealing had been with Malcolm Plaskitt,the transport consultant who had represented Dean at his public inquiry, rather than with the director or secretary of Lincolnshire Haulage.
The TC said that in June 1999 a licence was obtained by &ID Transport based at Stallingborough. It was surrendered in 2001. Companies House had no record of any such company. The TC considered the licence obtained by the fictitious SJD Transport was to overcome Dean's failure to obtain one. Dean's disqualification order was made to prevent a "very had operator from endangering the public or cheating legitimate operators from whom he might take business by unscrupulous means".
Flaws exposed
Other licences, such as those held by ARB and LA Contractors linked to Dean may have afforded him some shelter until their flaws were exposed. D&D Haulage, of which Palmer was a director and Richards transport manager, obtained a licence in March 2002 on which Dean's vehicles were specified. When it was surrendered in July 2003 Palmer had already registered a new company, Lincolnshire Haulage.
Unfortunately, the TC saw only Plaskitt's hand in these matters. It was he who had submitted the licence application and he who received all the correspondence and made the written representations received.
The TC was not satisfied that any of the relevant parties, the director, the secretary or the transport manager, had taken any active part.
In future he would insist that all licence applicants furnish him with their own business address. It was quite unsatisfactory. •