A Deeside skip firm that tried to save money by storing waste illegally and operated a truck with 10 loose wheel nuts has been stripped of its O-licence.
Traffic commissioner (TC) for Wales Nick Jones found that public health concerns and issues of fair competition arose after TJ’s Skip Hire was fined £20,000 last year in relation to storing waste at its site, rather than taking it to landfill.
A truck was also issued with an S-marked prohibition in May 2016 after it was found to have all 10 wheel nuts loose.
In a report compiled in April 2016, the DVSA found that the operator’s vehicle maintenance procedures were unsatisfactory. Trucks were not being inspected at the agreed six-weekly intervals; there was a high roadside prohibition rate; and a high annual test failure rate. It was issued with a warning on the basis that the company agreed to a maintenance audit and attended a seminar, but neither were met by the firm.
A follow-up maintenance investigation in June resulted in a delayed prohibition being issued to the company.
The operator told a public inquiry (PI) last month that director Kayleigh Burnham had been distracted by a serious medical issue involving her partner and transport manager, Brendan Furness.
It was conceded that the company should have sought an alternative transport manager’s CPC holder during his illness, but Furness was now recovering, had attended a two-day transport manager refresher course and had joined the RHA.
No evidence of financial standing was produced at the hearing.
The TC gave the firm credit for admitting its failings, and stepped back from making a finding that Furness had lost his repute as a transport manager.
He said: “It would be crass if I failed to take into account the clear evidence that during a large part of the period when there were failings, he was seriously ill.
“It is for this reason that I do not make a finding of loss of his repute and I also put weight on the evidence of his taking clear affirmative action to improve his transport manager skills as soon as he recovered sufficiently.”
TJ’s Skip Hire of Deeside is not to be confused with TJ Waste in Fareham.
