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A survey warns that 27% of UK hauliers will have to employ extra drivers just to comply with the latest amendments to the Working Time Directive on drivers' hours.

Driver shortages within the industry have been reported for some time, but a survey by  financial adviser Grant Thornton suggests the new rules will make matters much worse by restricting drivers to 56 hours over any seven-day period.

The driver shortage is expected to increase from 40,000 to 65,000 - but the survey also reveals that 70% of UK operators are at least as optimistic about the industry as they were last year.

Ian Carr, Grant Thornton recovery and reorganisation practice partner, says: "UK hauliers continue to be between a rock and a hard place. On the one hand, high costs such as diesel and foreign competitors undercutting prices have put a firm squeeze on profitability on the other hand, driver shortages are putting a handbrake on expansion.

"The Working Time Directive will simply make matters worse."

Carr predicts that the shortage will continue to encourage the recruitment of drivers from Eastern Europe, adding: "In terms of business volumes and values, the UK haulage industry offers a better picture of itself this year  than the past.

"However, margins remain very tight, with the average within the industry slightly south of 3%."