Benham Publishing Businesss Magazines February 2014 | Page 6

TransportLaw Tempted to try trucking? It seems so easy, buy or hire a goods vehicle and start delivering to your customers. You have control of when your products are delivered and more control over costs. Yet each year, many a business finds that it has fallen foul of the rules. If you are going to use a vehicle with a gross vehicle weight over 3.5 tonnes then it needs to be operated under the regulatory regime supervised by the Traffic Commissioners. Subject to a few exceptions, if it is being used for hire or reward or in connection with a business then you need an operator’s licence. Use a vehicle without authority, then not only could you be convicted of an offence and fined up to £5000 but also risk losing the vehicle. You need to make an application under the Goods Vehicles (Licensing of Operators) Act 1995 for an operator’s licence before you start operating. Operating the vehicles safely You have to show that you have satisfactory arrangements for maintaining the vehicles in a fit and serviceable condition, for complying with either domestic or EU drivers’ hours rules and ensuring that vehicles are not overloaded. Show us the money? To transport your own goods you will have to show access to £3100 for the first vehicle and £1700 for each subsequent vehicle. It is a continuing obligation and consists of having available sufficient financial resources to ensure the establishment and proper administration of the business carried on or proposed to be carried on under the licence. 6 CLOSEUP Winter 2013 The key questions are: • How much money can the operator find if the need arises? • How quickly can he find it? • Where will it come from? Somewhere to park? You need to specify where the vehicles will normally be kept and advertise that location within a paper circulating in the locality. The advertisement needs to be within a statutory format; if not, the application will be rejected. Where a vehicle is “normally kept” is a question of fact and degree, however traffic commissioners take a dim view of vehicles being parked regularly at an unauthorised location. Using a place as an unauthorised operating centre is an offence. Are you fit to hold an operator’s licence? When making the application you will be asked to declare details of the financial history of previous companies and previous convictions. Take care that the information supplied is correct. If the form is completed by a member of staff, the Traffic Commissioner is entitled to conclude that it will be checked by the applicant, a company secretary or director. If it later transpires that there are mistakes in the form, then this would go to whether the applicant is fit to hold a licence. If you are considering running your own goods vehicles then contact me for advice on this or any other aspect of road transport law. 01756 790631 [email protected] www.christabelhallas.co.uk Regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority SRA number 488651