The Transport Tribunal has allowed an appeal by a transport company, calling a Traffic Commissioner's reasoning "inadequate" after she revoked the company's licence and declared its transport manager had lost his repute.
In a remarkable attack on Deputy TC Mary Kane's judgement over South Lincs Plant Hire, Tribunal president Hugh Carlisle QC said she had failed to carry out a proper balancing exercise and criticised her language after the firm appeared at public inquiry for weekly rest offences.
Although a VOSA investigation revealed 26 occasions of insufficient weekly rest and 40 occasions of the tacho mode switch being used incorrectly, Carlisle said the offences arose from days of driving small distances and were just an hour or two short of the required 45 hours.
Apart from one isolated case there was no suggestion of inadequate daily rest or tiredness.
One driver had consistently parked his vehicle near his home rather than at the designated operating centre. The company immediately applied for authorisation of an additional operating centre and this was granted. Drivers and director Brett Maddison, who was also the transport manager, all admitted the offences during VOSA interviews.
However, the DTC described Maddison's conduct as "horrendous" and added that "the potential for risk and damage is immense". She didn't disqualify Maddison as a director but said he had lost his repute as a transport manager.
However the Transport Tribunal said it was necessary for the DTC to stand back and properly assess the company's failings.
It continued: "We think from the language used by the Deputy Traffic Commissioner she failed to distinguish the nature of the rest offences in the present case from those in which tiredness are a part. We are satisfied that the DTC misdirected herself and that she ought to have concluded 
that this was not a case for revocation."