Road transport lawyer and traffic commissioner public inquiry? At Smith Bowyer Clarke, our record of recovering seized trucks and loads is extremely high. Click here to see some recent examples. We can even arrange for collection, transhipment and onward transportation. Vehicles Seized for Operating Without an O Licence: The police and the DVSA have the power to seize your vehicle if they think you are operating without a licence. Only the legal owner of the vehicle can apply to to the authorities for the return of the truck. The owner of the seized vehicle will usually be expected to appear before the Traffic Commissioner at a hearing to explain, with evidence, why the vehicle should be returned to them. The law provides only four grounds for the return of the truck, three of which are highly technical. Often the result turns on the outcome of detailed legal argument.
An Appeal to the County Court. This consists of a court hearing at which the Judge will consider all of the evidence including whether the penalty should have been imposed at all and, if so, whether it was too high. Both routes may be followed independently, or at the same time, and if a Notice of Objection fails you can still appeal to the County Court. Be warned however – strict time limits apply to the appeal process. At Smith Bowyer Clarke, our road transport lawyers regularly conduct appeals both through the review process and in the County Court and have an impressive track record of cancelled or reduced penalties.
Expert team of Barristers and Solicitors with years of experience in providing advice and representation in Road Transport Law.Road Transport Lawyers for HGV and PSV Operators and Drivers in the UK and around Europe. In the eyes of the law, the company is using the vehicle when being driven by an employee. The company can also be deemed to have permitted offences to occur by requesting an employee to use a vehicle which has a defect. The consequences could be the driver attaining penalty points and potentially losing their licence. This may in turn impact your business. For a sole trader, they themselves may end up with penalty points on their licence. For a limited company, there would still be costly fines. If the company also holds an Operator’s Licence, such convictions would need to be reported to the Traffic Commissioner and could then impact on the Repute of the Operator. Read even more info on operators licence application.
The DVSA will probably send you a form PG13 which will detail the faults that they have found and will invite you to address them in writing before they consider reporting you to the Traffic Commissioner. Use this opportunity, it may not prevent you being called in for Public Inquiry but it will help demonstrate that you wish to be compliant and have taken or are going to take the necessary steps to do so. Your transport lawyer can assist you in preparing your responses, and can liaise with the DVSA on your behalf to try to put to rest any concerns they have. In many cases, a seemingly serious compliance failing can have a perfectly innocent explanation. Smith Bowyer Clarke have long experience in representing Operators, transport Managers and drivers in front of the Traffic Commissioner. Much of what we do involves helping to turn around Operators who are failing in their compliance. We have access to first rate consultants in a number of areas who can be trusted to give up to the minute advice. If you are worried why not give us a call.
Operators are legally required to keep tachograph records for a specified period of time. Failing to keep these records is an offence. At Public Inquiry, the Traffic Commissioner will want to know why records were not kept, how often records were analysed, and what steps the operator took to identify and prevent drivers’ hours infringements. What Will Happen? This will depend on the type of tachograph offence suspected, and the stage of the process. If suspected tachograph offences are found during a roadside stop by DVSA / VOSA, the driver can expect to be interviewed under caution. Evidence from the interview can be used to support any criminal prosecution or driver conduct hearing. You should always speak to a transport lawyer first for a free, no obligation initial consultation. See even more information on Road Haulage Solicitors.