Drivers, Including Director, Driving Without Cards – Licence Allowed to Continue By Traffic Commissioner After Public Inquiry

The operator in this case, represented at Public Inquiry by Barrister Harry Bowyer, was running minibuses which largely serviced school runs. These were out of scope for the EU regulations. They also did private hire work which was within scope and there was enormous confusion amongst the drivers, director included, as to whether cards should be used or not.

The Transport Manager at the time was distinctly hands off and the Traffic Commissioner stated that the Transport Manager’s “actions in relation to this licence concern me greatly. I found very little evidence that he had exercised the required continuous and effective management. I would also question whether in his dealings with the operator and [director’s name], he always had their best interest as his primary concern.”

The Transport Manager was also in business as a Transport Consultant and an auditor and could not rely upon any lack of knowledge to explain his actions. and kept his good repute, although severely tarnished, by the skin of his teeth.

A competent Transport Consultant was instructed and a competent Transport Manager was put in place and the business was restored to full compliance. A new, younger, director was put in place.

The Traffic Commissioner, satisfied with the changes above, allowed the licence to continue subject to a suspension of the licence and a number of undertakings.