HGV Licencing: How the Past Can Be Your Enemy

Acquiring an HGV licence is a pretty straightforward process in most cases. For drivers, it is a matter of undergoing the proper training and passing the required tests. Operators undergo a different process that requires the submission of paperwork and an official review. In both cases, qualifications are relatively easy to meet. Yet there are exceptions. Sometimes a person’s past can become the enemy when trying to acquire a licence.

A good case in point is that of a South Lanarkshire man whose application for an HGV operators licence was recently rejected by the Traffic Commissioner of Scotland. The Commissioner refused to approve the licence based on suspicions that the applicant was attempting to set up a straw business on behalf of his disqualified father and mother.

The man’s father, who previously owned a business that involved towing boats around Europe, had his operator’s licence taken away in 2009 after he and his company were found in violation of the law. His ban was to last for three years. As for the man’s mother, her operator’s licence was revoked indefinitely due to a lack of professional competence. As the Traffic Commissioner sees things, the applicant’s business is similar enough to that which his parents did to raise suspicion.

In his defence, the applicant claims his parents have nothing to do with his current business dealings. In fact, he claims they now live in Bulgaria. He says he needs an HGV operator’s licence in order to haul boats he plans to sell and repair throughout the UK and continental Europe. Without that licence he says his business model cannot work. Now that the Commissioner has ruled, it looks like he will have to find work as a company employee.

Licence Checks and Records

There is obviously no way for us to know whether the Traffic Commissioner’s decision was the right one. Nor can we say whether the applicant’s business was legitimate or not. But we do know that the past is an important thing to consider when applying for an HGV licence. The reality is that employers run routine licence checks and look at previous records.

New driver hopefuls who have past blemishes that they believe might hinder their ability to get an HGV licence do not necessarily need to panic based on this one incident. And they should by no means fail to take action under the assumption that they will not be approved. They should at least look into things to find out where they stand.

Not every past blemish is serious enough to disqualify someone from acquiring an HGV licence. For someone who already has a licence, the authorities are willing to show some mercy for all but the most serious offences. The point is this: the past can be your enemy when applying for an HGV licence, but that does not mean it will be. Go through the application process and see what happens. You might be pleasantly surprised at the outcome.

Sources:

AOL Money – http://money.aol.co.uk/2015/09/12/how-advisers-are-preventing-pension-transfers/