Telford haulier suspended over hours breaches
A haulage operator has been suspended from running HGVs for two months after its drivers were found to be working excessive hours.
West Midlands Traffic commissioner Nick Jones also found that drivers for Telford haulier Wendy Kerr had broken speed limits and created false records of their work.
Ms Kerr will not be able to run any vehicles throughout July and August after Mr Jones said the road safety risks had been "very real".
The haulier, who operates from Cross Green, in Allscott, also ran more vehicles than authorised and did not carry out proper checks of driver records.
Mr Jones heard from the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency during a public inquiry in March.
An investigation by a traffic examiner found several issues with Ms Kerr's operation, with 10 per cent of driver records containing infringements.
In a report to Mr Jones, the DVSA officer said the operation was out of control.
He said he was particularly concerned at the road safety risks of a driver who regularly worked double shifts.
In one instance, the same driver's offences resulted in him driving for more than 16 hours within a 24-hour period. The maximum allowed is 10 hours.
The examiner told the traffic commissioner the hours, in his experience, had been unprecedented.
Mr Jones also heard an employee had used another driver's name for his own driving records, even though the driver was driving for another business.
During the inquiry, Ms Kerr and her transport manager, Robert Reilly, gave evidence to the commissioner.
Both had attended a one-day training course before the hearing, with Ms Kerr noting improvements had been made and the firm was now compliant.
But Mr Jones found the business could only give oral assertions at the hearing and there was tangible evidence other than the training course they had attended.
Mr Jones, issuing his decision in writing after the inquiry, said the failures had stemmed from incompetence and neglect.
He said Mr Reilly, who told the regulator he had delegated tasks to a driver, had demonstrated a "woeful disregard for his responsibilities".
"His lack of control stemmed in large part from his lack of knowledge and appreciation of his role," said Mr Jones.
"I am concerned that the road safety risks have been very real and that the competitive advantage obtained by the flagrant abuses of the drivers' hours rules are such that fair competition requirements necessitate firm, albeit proportionate, regulatory action."
Ms Kerr had an application to increase her fleet from four vehicles and four trailers, to 12 vehicles and 14 trailers, turned down.
Mr Reilly lost his repute and professional competence as a transport manager and was disqualified from acting in this role until he passed the Certificate of Professional Competence examinations.
Mr Jones also took action against the firm's drivers, which included disqualifying a driver who admitted to falsifying his records.
