haulage company
Discussion
Good evening phers. Just looking for a bit of clarification as my efforts to find the answer on google hasn't amounted to much. If a family were to set up a haulage company, 3 trucks, wife being manager and accountant etc etc husband and 2 sons being drivers,is it just the wife who needs to apply for the O licence? Many thanks for any help. Have a good night.
There is no hard and fast rule as to who should be the CPC holder however VOSA would require you to show that it is held by the person who has appropriate custody and control of the fleet. In the small business that is likely to be a statutory director or a manager employed in the business. This person should have "executive" responsibility, in other words empowerment to exert control.
It is of course true that some businesses arrange for a CPC holder to "front", perhaps via a third party such as a commercial workshop, a fleet management company or an individual who is detached from the business. VOSA take a dim view of this and quite rightly too.
In a small business you could be both the CPC holder and a driver, again there is no hard and fast rule but if say you were spending 80% of your time behind the wheel and 20% managing fleet compliance I think that would be seen as reasonable. That said, if one person is going to be mostly office based then combining the CPC responsibilities with that role would be more logical.
It is not over expensive or lengthy to train for a CPC, my recommendation would be that you decide who will be the most hands-on with the day to day running and get the training done for that person. Quite aside of then being able to meet your legal obligations you will have a broader range of skills that will assist you with the running of the business.
It is of course true that some businesses arrange for a CPC holder to "front", perhaps via a third party such as a commercial workshop, a fleet management company or an individual who is detached from the business. VOSA take a dim view of this and quite rightly too.
In a small business you could be both the CPC holder and a driver, again there is no hard and fast rule but if say you were spending 80% of your time behind the wheel and 20% managing fleet compliance I think that would be seen as reasonable. That said, if one person is going to be mostly office based then combining the CPC responsibilities with that role would be more logical.
It is not over expensive or lengthy to train for a CPC, my recommendation would be that you decide who will be the most hands-on with the day to day running and get the training done for that person. Quite aside of then being able to meet your legal obligations you will have a broader range of skills that will assist you with the running of the business.
Edited by Keep it stiff on Friday 4th April 22:04
no-worries88 said:
Thank you for that. The wife would be the most hands on covering pretty much everything other than the driving.
Its important I think that the company and the CPC holder (Transport manager) make themselves aware of their obligations under their O licence.Remember too - that if the company doesn't do things as it should - maintenance, drivers hours and such like - that could lead to action been taken againsed the licence if things were deemed serious enough.
Look to get things right from the word go - and establish whats expected of the company, its drivers and CPC holder before commencing operations - rather then learning the hard way when Mr Vosa comes calling about issues
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