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Adams creditors surprised at links to new pallet firm
Page 6
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.1 by Dominic Perry
Members of the United Pallet Network are asking why they have been saddled with around £50,000 worth of debt by a collapsed haulage firm, whose associated company has now joined a rival network.
In fact The Pallet Network (TPN) was approached by J Adams & Sons (Warehousing) as early as last December, about joining its network. The warehousing firm operates from the same premises, and uses at least one of the same trucks as J Adams & Sans, which went into administrative receivership last week (CM 30 Jan-5 Feb).
Jim Scanlan, managing director of TPN, says that he was not aware of the history behind the firm. He says: "We were approached by them prior to Christmas. We did our normal pre-joining checks on J Adams & Sons (Warehousing) and they came up fine. As far as we are concerned the company we are dealing with Is a robust one and we were unaware of what was going on."
However, J Adams & Sons
(Warehousing) started trading with TPN Just days before the receivership of its associated company. This has left UPN members with a sour taste in their mouths. UPN boss Martin Chapman says: "When they joined us they had no freight coming in to the system and our service has allowed them to build it up.
Now they have jumped ship and at the same time tried to disregard the members who have given them excellent service over the past 12 months."
UPN member Martin Barrett, from Nottingham-based Martin Barratt Transport, says: "I don't think that TPN can know about the way it has conducted its business or they would not have allowed it in."
David Sleggs from Dumfrles-based Scotrans, which is owed around 16,000, adds: "I don't blame TPN at all, they've taken things at face value." But adds that but J Adams & Sons (Warehousing) may not have given the full picture.
Another Scottish haulier hit by the debt is Stonehouse-based McCulloch European Transport which is owed almost 110,000.
Additionally the Vehicle Inspectorate says it has no record of J Adams & Sons (Warehousing) having an Operator's Ucence. It appears to have applied for one, but at present has not been granted Interim authority.
However; CM spotted at least two trucks leaving Adam's yard in Wellingborough this week, one on the night trunk to TPN. Barry Adams, a representative of both J Adams & Sons and J Adams & Sons (Warehousing), refused to discuss the relationship between TPN and the firms claiming it was "of no relevance", but admitted that it had been planning to switch networks. He also refused to discuss the firm's 0-licence, beyond claiming it had one.
He adds: "The directors of this company have lost God knows how much, they have personal guarantees on at least 1350,000 of the debts incurred." He says the firm was forced under due to cashflow problems.
E-mail: dominic.perryarbl.co.uk