Decision

Decision for Greene Contracting UK Ltd (OF1132458)

Published 27 August 2024

0.1 In the Eastern Traffic Area

1. Written Decision of the Deputy Traffic Commissioner

2. Public Inquiry held on 11 July 2024 at Cambridge

2.1 Operator: Greene Contracting UK Ltd (OF1132458)

3. Background

Greene Contracting UK Ltd holds a restricted goods vehicle operator’s licence (OF1132458) for four vehicles. The licence was granted in 2014. The directors of the company are Darren Greene and Eugene Green.

4. 2023 public inquiry

On 26 July 2023 the company, then called Aboveall Scaffolding Services Ltd, attended a public inquiry in Cambridge. The then director Russell McVey attended. The company’s operator licence was suspended for 21 days and curtailed from six to four vehicles indefinitely after I had found the following shortcomings:

(a) large gaps between preventative maintenance inspections;

(b) no brake testing of vehicles until very recently;

(c) driver defect reporting clearly ineffective, with multiple preventative maintenance inspection sheets showing numerous driver detectable defects;

(d) no effective monitoring of drivers’ hours infringements or missing mileage;

(e) vehicles leaving the maintenance provider with defects not rectified; no subsequent record of rectification;

(f) insufficient improvement after shortcomings had been identified by DVSA in September 2022.

The company also agreed various undertakings: i) that vehicles would have laden brake tests at each safety inspection; ii) that an independent compliance audit would be carried out by 31 January 2024; and iii) that it would employ a transport consultant to advise on and assist with compliance for at least one day per week until 31 October 2023 and thereafter for at least one day per month until 31 July 2024.

5. Subsequent developments

In November 2023 one of the company’s two directors, Russell McVey, resigned and was replaced by Darren Greene (the other director, Eugene Greene, appointed in April 2022, remained). The company, Aboveall Scaffolding Services Ltd, changed its name to Greene Contracting UK Ltd. None of these changes was notified to the traffic commissioner’s office.

The company failed to submit the required audit by the deadline of 31 January 2024. The traffic commissioner’s office in Cambridge chased the operator: director Darren Greene replied on 11 April 2024 saying that he had acquired the company in December 2023 after the previous director Russell McVey had been unable to continue with the business owing to REDACTED. He (Darren Greene) had been unaware of the undertakings given at the July 2023 public inquiry: he asked the traffic commissioner’s office to send another copy [although I note that the undertakings were set out in the company’s operator licence and should therefore have been easily accessible to Mr Greene].

The audit was eventually carried out by transport consultant Stephen Collins on 25 April 2024. The audit reported that:

(a) there was no evidence of driver licence checks;

(b) vehicle files were not up to date;

(c) some preventative maintenance inspections (PMIs) had been late;

(d) laden roller brake tests had not always been carried out at or before each PMI;

(e) the forward planner did not extend six months forward;

(f) the undertaking relating to the use of a consultant to assist with compliance until 31 July 2024 had not been fulfilled, the arrangement with a consultant having been terminated by the company in November 2023.

6. Public inquiry

In the light of the company’s failure to notify material changes and owing to its apparent failure to fulfil the undertakings, given at the July 2023 inquiry, relating to the audit, roller brake testing and the engagement of a transport consultant, the company was called to a public inquiry in Cambridge on 11 July 2024. The call-up letter was sent on 5 June 2024, citing Section 26(1)(b), (f) and (h) and Section 28 of the 1995 Act.

The call-up letter requested the company to submit maintenance records and evidence of finances by 27 June 2024. Nothing was received from the company, either by this date or subsequently. The inquiry clerk has attempted to contact the company numerous times, by telephone and email. There has been no response. The company has not appeared at today’s inquiry and has offered no explanation for its failure to do so.

In the company’s absence, I have proceeded to consider the matter and make findings on the evidence available.

7. Findings

I make formal findings to the effect that the company has failed to fulfil its undertakings (Section 26(1)(f) of the 1995 Act refers):-

(a) to have an audit carried out by 31 January 2024. The audit was only carried out on 25 April 2024, after the company was chased by the traffic commissioner’s office;

(b) to engage a transport consultant to assist with and advise on compliance for at least one day a month from 31 October 2023 to 31 July 2024. The transport consultant’s contract was terminated in November 2023;

(c) to have laden roller brake tests at each PMI. No evidence of any brake tests has been submitted to the traffic commissioner’s office. The audit report commented that the operator was having difficult in fulfilling this undertaking;

(d) to notify material changes to the traffic commissioner within 28 days. The change of company name and the change of directors in November 2023 were never notified.

I make a further finding to the effect that I cannot be satisfied that the company any longer has the funds necessary to support the maintenance of its vehicles (Sections 13D and 26(1)(h) of the 1995 Act refer). The company has offered no evidence of its finances.

8. Consideration

In my decision at the conclusion of the previous public inquiry on 26 July 2023, I warned the company that “any repetition of the current level of non-compliance will result in it being recalled to public inquiry, where the revocation of its licence will be the almost certain outcome.” It was put on specific notice that it had to improve.

I note Darren Greene’s claim that he was unaware of the undertakings given at the public inquiry in July 2023 and that the previous director Mr McVey’s REDACTED hampered Mr Greene’s task of establishing exactly what he was taking over. I express surprise at this claim for several reasons:

(a) Eugene Greene has been a director of the company since April 2022, so would have been aware of the public inquiry in July 2023 and the undertakings which the company gave at that inquiry;

(b) the undertakings were recorded on the company’s operator licence, which should have been one of the documents inspected by Darren Greene when he assumed control of the company in December 2023;

(c) the audit, carried out in April 2024 by Stephen Collins, refers specifically to Russell McVey as the “manager” and the person present during the audit. Mr McVey is identified in the audit in numerous places as the responsible person (for managing maintenance, drivers etc). This is difficult to square with Darren Green’s claim that Mr McVey was suffering from REDACTED and incapable of passing on information about the undertakings given at the July 2023 public inquiry.

9. Conclusion

The company has largely ignored the undertakings it gave at the July 2023 public inquiry (and which enabled me to allow the licence to continue, albeit in a curtailed state and after a suspension). It has refused to engage in the inquiry process and has failed to reply to all correspondence and phone calls since the call-up letter was issued. I find that the company is no longer fit to hold an operator’s licence (Sections 13B and 26(1)(h) of the 1995 Act refer). Given that it has failed to fulfil the undertakings given in July 2023, it follows that I cannot trust it to comply in the future. Its failure to attend the inquiry means that it deserves to go out of business.

10. Decisions

10.1 Licence revocation

I am thus revoking the company’s operator licence with effect from 0001 hours on 1 August 2024. I am giving less than the usual 28 days’ notice because I have no confidence, in the absence of any maintenance records, that the vehicles are in a fit state to be on the road.

10.2 Disqualification of the company and its directors

Because of the company’s failings (which come on top of those found at the 2023 inquiry), because Darren Greene’s explanation for his failure to implement the undertakings is seriously misleading, and because the company has simply ignored the call to a public inquiry, I conclude that both the company and its directors should be disqualified under Section 28 from holding or obtaining an operator’s licence in the future and (in Eugene Greene’s and Darren Greene’s case) from being the directors of any company holding or obtaining such a licence. I am disqualifying them for an indefinite period of time, although they are free to request a hearing before a traffic commissioner if they wish to argue that the disqualification be time-limited or cancelled.

Nicholas Denton
Deputy Traffic Commissioner

11 July 2024