Seven former directors of a Gravesend transport firm have been banned from running vehicles indefinitely by the region’s Traffic Commissioner after the business operated in a manner which “almost totally disregarded the law”.
Nick Denton also revoked the licence held by Newport Commercial Asset Management Ltd (formerly named Euroform Ltd and KSRD Ltd) with immediate effect, following a public inquiry on 17 August.
No company representatives attended the hearing before the Traffic Commissioner in Eastbourne.
The industry regulator concluded: “There is nothing at all to suggest that this company can be trusted to comply with the rules: its whole behaviour demonstrates that it cannot and that it is not interested in engaging with the regulatory authorities.”
Evidence submitted to the Traffic Commissioner by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) revealed:
· A vehicle specified on the company’s licence failed to stop for a DVSA officer in October 2015;
· The company failed to produce drivers’ hours records on several occasions;
· The company had no tachograph card and had failed to carry out any downloads of driver cards or vehicle units;
· Only one preventative maintenance inspection report was produced over 15 months;
· There was only evidence of one driver completing walk-round checks;
· The company had a very high prohibition rate
· Fixed penalties had been issued for drivers’ hours and tachograph offences, including one for a dangerous load;
· A manager from the business, Richard Hart, impersonated one of the directors, Richard Paul Nicholl-Morris, during a meeting with a DVSA traffic examiner;
· The company was not using its authorised operating centre
Ordering the indefinite disqualification of former directors Michael James Arthurton, Miranda Haffenden-Wood, Mark Brian Haffenden-Wood, Mark Kingshott, Mel Milner, Richard Paul Nicholl-Morris and Jaz Wood, the Traffic Commissioner said:
“Because the directors have refused to appear or to respond to any of the correspondence from DVSA or my office from February through to June 2016, and because they have allowed vehicles to operate in a seriously illegal and unsafe manner, I have decided to disqualify them under Section 28 of the 1995 Act from holding or obtaining an operator’s licence in the future.”
