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Finance house is found not to blame for client's action
Page 31
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Evergreen Leasing has its trailer returned by
the Transport Tribunal. Mike Jewell reports.
THE TRANSPORT Tribunal has accepted an appeal by finance house Evergreen Leasing to return the one trailer it owned from a fleet of three vehicles and three trailers impounded by Vosa for illegal cabotage operations.The other five vehicles remain impounded and will be disposed of by Vosa.
Scottish Deputy Traffic Commissioner Richard McFarlane had originally turned down bids for the return of the vehicles and trailers by three companies. Hillegon, Netherlands-based Davidson & Wilson BV, an associate company of Aberdeen-based Davidson & Wilson, had sought the return of three tractor units and a semi-trailer. Evergreen Leasing and Clydesdale Bank Asset Finance had each sought the return of a semi-trailer. Together the vehicles constituted the fleet of Davidson &Wilson By.
The Deputy TC said the Evergreen trailer had been hired to Inehcape Transport, which hired it on to Davidson &Wilson.At the time of its detention it was being operated by the Dutch company without the knowledge, let alone the consent,of Eve rgreen. However,Evergreen had taken no contractual steps to ensure inchcape Transport operated the trailer in accordance with the law (CM 28 June,'No return of vehicles used in illegal cabotage operations').
Vosa was not at the Tribunal but wrote to say it was accepted that, unlike other impounding cases, there was nothing in the present case which had put Evergreen on inquiry. Its terms and conditions were such that it appeared the company did what was necessary to ensure the trailer was used solely by the organisation hiring it. In the absence of a statutory requirement to take reasonable steps, it was submitted that the company's hire agreement appeared to be sufficient. There was no evidence of a high degree of fault in this case.
The fact the trailer was not hired by Davidson & Wilson BV in Holland — that company's member state of establishment — should have no bearing on whether or not the trailer should be returned to Evergreen.The hire agreement to Inchcape prohibited it from parting with possession of the trailer at all. Whether or not Davidson & Wilson's illegal hiring of that trailer from Inchcape was in the UK or Holland could have no bearing on Evergreen's state of knowledge and it should not suffer because of the unlawful activities of its hirer.
Allowing the appeal, the Tribunal said it agreed and it was grateful to Vosa for the responsible approach that had been taken.The DTC was faced with complex issues of law and fact and could understand how the position of the company's trailer came to be sidelined. •