The 25-vehicle international licence held by Bristol-based Abus is to be suspended on 31 January until such time it has reorganised matters so that the company is the entity actually operating the vehicles and not LC Munden and Sons, trading as Crown Coachways.
The firm had been called before Traffic Commissioner (TC) Kevin Rooney after a Vehicle Examiner reported that the two businesses were co-located, the vehicles were owned and maintained by Mundens and the drivers were employed by Mundens. He had been assisted during his visit by Simon Munden, Director of Mundens, and Mundens’ general manager.
Abus’ sole director, Alan Peters, said that he and Mr Munden had gone to school together and had worked closely all their lives.
Prior to the grant of his licence, all Mundens’ vehicles had been on hire to his former sole trader licence. It was easier for him to show financial standing, so the Mundens licence was surrendered and all work contracted through Abus.
Mundens had PAYE payroll systems in place and it was easy simply to employ drivers through Mundens and then hire them to Abus. Abus paid for Driver CPC training. The arrangement was akin to using Mundens as a driver employment agency.
Disagreeing, the TC said that with a true agency driver, the operator could terminate an individual’s employment at any time. That was not the case here. The company’s action could be frustrated by the need for Mundens to follow a proper disciplinary process. As Abus was Mundens’ only customer, Abus refusing the services of a driver would place Mundens in an impossible position.
Mr Peters said that situation had never arisen.
Mr Munden described a commercial arrangement where Abus paid Mundens a set amount each month. There was then an annual reconciliation based on actual hours worked and maintenance conducted. He added a management fee to the drivers’ hourly rate. Abus owned the vehicles.
The TC said that while Abus had influence over the drivers, it was Mundens who had control. It followed that the vehicles were operated by Mundens, not Abus.
Consequently, Abus had lent its licence authority to an illegal operator. That would normally have serious ramifications for the good repute of the operator and transport manager. However, there was nothing to suggest that the current position was arrived at with any ill intent. It simply evolved over time.
It was clear that the lines at times became blurred between the two businesses. In reality, it ran as a single entity with all parties working together to deliver the service. It was necessary to act to regularise the operation.
Suspending the licence with effect from 0000hrs on 31 January, until such time as the operation was regularised, the TC said that provided that the company was working positively towards restructuring operations to be fully compliant with the law, the suspension date could be varied or the order set aside if restructuring was completed before that date.
