Transport company purchased to continue disqualified operator’s activities

The deputy traffic commissioner for the Eastern traffic area has disqualified the director of an Aylesbury haulage firm after finding that it was bought to continue the business of his father’s failed company.

DTC Laura Thomas said Sukhraj Singh’s conduct was so serious that he should be kicked out of the industry for five years and the licence of Top Lane Haulage had to be revoked.

A Cambridge public inquiry heard how the haulage company was purchased so that Singh’s father, Jaspreet Singh, could continue running a business after R&J Transport PVT had its licence revoked in 2022.

The situation came to light when a lorry driver employed by Top Line was stopped at a DVSA check site and his vehicle was found to be displaying an incorrect ministry plate.

The DVSA also found no history of downloads and the driver, Zacchaeus Felix, had driven multiple times without a card.

Further investigations revealed Sukhraj Singh had falsified documents provided to the enforcement agency; something the director later admitted in evidence.

However, he also denied knowing that his father’s O-licence for R&J Transport had been revoked and that although he had provided advice to him initially, he claimed Jaspreet had stepped back from Top Line’s business and was not involved in its running.

But in her written decision, DTC Thomas said it was only thanks to Felix’s evidence that it had become apparent Top Line’s licence was being used as a device to continue R&J Transport’s work:

“I conclude that Top Lane Haulage was bought to continue the business of Jaspreet Singh and that he exercised control over Top Lane Haulage (in contravention of his disqualification), which was an operation set up to take over the work of R&J Transport PVT Ltd,” she said.

“Sukhraj Singh has been dishonest with DVSA as part of their criminal investigation into serious offences and was less than honest with me at public inquiry.”

Thomas added that she struggled to identify a rehabilitation measure to address the level of dishonesty displayed and so she revoked the licence and disqualified Sukhraj Singh for five years.

At a driver conduct hearing, Felix was vocational entitlement was revoked and he was disqualified for 18 months.