Traffic Commissioner warns of risks of illegal licence lending

The Office of the Traffic Commissioner has reminded operators of the importance of adhering to the conditions of their O-licence after a recent case of licence lending came before TC Richard Turfitt and resulted in one O-licence application being refused and another licence being revoked. The operator concerned had engaged in the lending of a disc to another company in exchange for a daily fee plus an amount of money to cover financial standing requirements. The owner of the licence believed this was legal, whilst the operator using it said that he had taken advice from the operator who had lent the disc. “Control of the vehicles and drivers running under your licence shouldn’t be given to anyone else. We know there are external pressures, including from customers, but these can’t override your responsibilities as an operator, or the separate legal duties of your transport manager. The same goes for licence discs too. They can’t be shared with other businesses,” said the bulletin.