Decision

Decision for Michael Millington t/a Bluebox Sameday Logistics (OD2007197)

Published 7 July 2023

0.1 In the West Midlands Traffic Area

1. Written Decision of the Deputy Traffic Commissioner

1.1 Michael Millington t/a Bluebox Sameday Logistics (OD2007197)

2. Background

Michael Millington t/a Bluebox Sameday Couriers holds a standard international goods vehicle operator licence, granted in February 2018, for three vehicles. The transport manager nominated on the licence at the time of its grant was Richard Holden.

2.1 Transport manager

On 12 February 2023 Richard Holden wrote to the traffic commissioner’s office stating that he had learnt that Michael Millington was continuing to operate using his (Mr Holden’s) name as transport manager. Mr Holden wrote that he had in fact resigned as such on 19 August 2019 and since then had not been associated with Mr Millington.

Asked for an explanation of why he was without a transport manager, Mr Millington replied that “the first time we found out was when we renew [sic] the licence last month. He asked for a period of grace in which to find a new transport manager. This was refused by TC Dorrington.

3. Public inquiry

On 21 March 2023 TC Dorrington revoked the licence after Mr Millington had failed to respond to a “propose to revoke” letter. The licence was subsequently reinstated after Mr Millington said that he had not received the letter and requested a public inquiry. The call-up letter for the inquiry was sent on 19 May 2023, citing Sections 26(1)(e), (f) and (h) and 27(1) of the 1995 Act. By email of the same date Mr Millington asked to surrender the licence because it had not proved possible to find a new transport manager. This request was refused by TC Dorrington, who decided to maintain the public inquiry that Mr Millington himself had asked for. Mr Millington was informed that the inquiry was going ahead and that he should attend. But by email of 25 June Mr Millington said that he had decided to retire and would not be attending. He referred to the problems caused by “Richard [Holden]’s sudden departure in Feb this year [2023]. This seemed to contradict his earlier assertion that Mr Holden’s departure had only somehow come to light when the licence had been renewed in January 2023. It was wholly at odds with Mr Holden’s statement that he had ceased all involvement with the licence in August 2019.

3.1 DVSA report

On 14 June 2023 the traffic commissioner’s office in Birmingham received a report from DVSA traffic examiner Kevin England. Mr England stated that one of the vehicles specified on Mr Millington’s licence, FL18 VAD, had been stopped on 14 April 2023 and found to be 12% overweight. A prohibition had been issued. The driver was found to have committed an offence of driving without his tachograph card, and further investigations by DVSA suggested that the driver had committed a further 22 such offences. The operator did not appear to have identified this missing mileage or indeed to have ever issued any driver infringement reports. Mr England also found that the vehicle’s tachograph had not been downloaded for 94 days, beyond the maximum permitted interval of 90 days.

Mr England also reported that the vehicle tax of FL18 VAD had expired on 28 February 2023 but that the vehicle’s tachograph data showed that it had been used on 23 occasions between 1 March and 14 April 2023.

Mr England further reported that the trading entity appeared to be a limited company, Bluebox Sameday Couriers Ltd, not Mr Millington as a sole trader. The company had been incorporated in November 2022: Mr Millington was its only director.

Mr England’s report was forwarded to Mr Millington on 15 June 2023, with the advice that it would be included in the issues to be considered at the public inquiry on 28 June.

3.2 Public inquiry

As he indicated, Mr Millington did not appear at the inquiry today. I have therefore considered the matter on the written evidence available.

4. Findings

I make the following findings of fact:

i) Mr Millington has operated without a transport manager for a considerable period of time, almost certainly since August 2019. His own account of Mr Holden leaving suddenly in February contradicted his earlier version that Mr Holden’s absence had only been discovered when the licence had been renewed in January (itself a highly unlikely explanation). The licence lacks professional competence and has long lacked it (Sections 26(1)(h) and 27(1)(a) of the 1995 Act refer);

ii) Mr Millington has failed to fulfil his undertaking that rules relating to drivers hours and tachographs would be observed (Section 26(1)(f) refers). Vehicle tachograph units have not been downloaded within the required 90 days; vehicles have been driven without a tachograph card on numerous occasions, without these offences being identified or therefore addressed by the operator;

iii) Mr Millington has failed to fulfil his undertaking that vehicles would not be overloaded. A vehicle was given a prohibition for a 12% overload;

iv) Mr Millington has failed to fulfil his undertaking that vehicles would be operated in a lawful manner. A vehicle has been operated while untaxed for at least six weeks;.

v) there has been an undeclared material change to the licence in that there has been a change of entity: vehicles are now being operated by a different entity, the limited company Bluebox Sameday Couriers Ltd. The company should have applied for an operator licence in its own name before starting to operate;

Mr Millington is not of good repute (Section 27(1)(a) of the 1995 Act refers). He has managed his operator licence in a wholly non-compliant manner, unsurprisingly given the absence of a transport manager. He has practised a high level of deceit in in pretending over an extended period of time that Mr Holden was still exercising the function of transport manager. He has also demonstrated a frivolous attitude to the regulatory regime by first exercising his right to request a public inquiry (thereby delaying the revocation of the licence by more than three months) and then refusing to attend that same inquiry.

5. Conclusions

Mr Millington has not presented any evidence of financial standing and I have found that i) he has been without a transport manager (and therefore lacked professional competence) for several years, and ii) that he has lost his good repute. Revocation of the licence is therefore mandatory under Section 27(1)(a) of the 1995 Act. As Mr Millington has already returned the licence discs in an attempt to surrender the licence, revocation will take immediate effect.

I have considered whether to disqualify, under Section 28 of the 1995 Act, Mr Millington from holding or obtaining an operator licence in the future. He has stated that he has decided to retire, but the deliberate deception and degree of unlawful operation of vehicles make a disqualification order appropriate in this case. He should not be permitted to hold an operator’s licence again.

The disqualification is for an indefinite period of time, although Mr Millington is free to request (and attend) a hearing before a traffic commissioner if he wishes to argue that the disqualification be time-limited or curtailed. Given the nature and extent of his failings and dishonesty, however, I would not envisage that his disqualification could be reduced below five years.

Nicholas Denton

Deputy Traffic Commissioner

28 June 2023