Given a ticket to ride
Page 3
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Fining hauliers for carrying illegal imm.grants into the U mil always be an emotive topic for international operators and, as our exclusive story on p6 reveals, these fines are the rise.
In 2009, some 3,495 fines were handed out to drivers and/or operators, more than double the 1,700 issued in 2008. Either the industry is getting worse at preventing stowaways from getting in to their vehicles, or the UK Bor der Agency (UKBA1 is getting better at finding them.
But what does seem clear is that drivers and operators are much keener to challenge these penalties. Despite nearly doubling the number of fines, revenue raised has only gone up to El .óm from El .5m in 2008.
UKBA can levy a civil penalty if the haulier -fails to have an effective system to protect vehicles from being used by clandestine entrants, or fails to operate the s tern properly-. We are all for fines (or worse] for any operator that leaves the doors his trailer open in Calais with a bright neon sign offering a free ride to the UK, but II many of these exist, compared with the number of diligent international hauliers who are the victims of stowaways. creasingly desperate attempts to gain access to the Ul CM would actively encourage UKBA to increase engagement with the industry and raise awareness of its Civil Penalty Accreditation Scheme. The more operators who sign up, the fewer number of fines issued, and therefore the time and money operators and the UKB, waste on appeals will reduce.
There is, after all, no such thing as a free ride Christopher Walton