Suspicions of Fronting for Father allayed at Traffic Commissioner’s Public Inquiry

The Operator in this case, represented at Public Inquiry by Harry Bowyer, had his application for an Operator’s Licence called in for Public Inquiry. His father had been called in twice before and, on the second time over the guns had his licence revoked and was disqualified indefinitely. As the business proposed by the son used the same vehicles, same operating centre and his father was a shareholder the Traffic Commissioner was concerned that this was a “front” for the father. Having heard from the Operator and his Transport Consultant he was satisfied that this was a genuinely new business with new drivers and was to be run without interference from the father. The licence was granted subject to the single undertaking that the Operator would commission an audit after 6 months.