Senior traffic commissioner Beverley Bell is reminding operators there must be "absolute transparency" when it comes to who is operating licensed vehicles. Company directors, she adds, have "one opportunity only" to provide clarity to her office.
Her message comes after an operator was given 28 days – following a public inquiry – to confirm which entity was operating its vehicles.
"I want to know who I give the discs to, I want to know who is operating the vehicles and I want to know who the drivers work for," Bell (pictured) remarked at the conclusion of the hearing.
"When I issue those discs, it says to the world at large that these vehicles and drivers are safe."
Statutory guidance makes it clear that any business holding a licence must be the entity responsible for running the vehicles under it.
When a change occurs – such as if a partnership ceases and a limited company is formed – the new business has to apply for a licence in its own right. Operators who fail to do so are running illegally.
