Bed manufacturer caught napping

The director of a Smethwick business that held a licence authorising three HGVs has been disqualified for a year after demonstrating “an appalling lack of control”.

Deputy TC Nick Jones said Sleep Revolution director Mohammed Din Ayub allowed a driver to get behind the wheel of an HGV while disqualified and without holding the required CPC qualification. In addition, the lorry was later found to be uninsured.

Despite repeated attempts by the DVSA and office of the TC to contact the company following a subsequent investigation into its business, no-one from Sleep Revolution attended the public inquiry. Nevertheless, DTC Jones accepted the accuracy of the evidence from the DVSA and concluded that the restricted licence operator needed to be closed down.

In his written decision, he said: “Any order other than revocation of the licence would in the circumstances be perverse.” He said Ayub had revealed a total lack of appreciation of the responsibilities of being an operator and that a 12-month disqualification was proportionate.

The PI had heard that Ayub had recently resigned from his position and a new director called Najeeb Sabir had replaced him. However, the OTC had not been notified of these changes and Jones said that if Sabir made any application in the future, it would be brought to the attention of the traffic commissioner. “Turning to the limited company a 12 month disqualification is appropriate, in the event of any future application I suspect that a public inquiry will determine matters,” he added.