Croft Travel Lancashire Ltd (t/a Croft Travel)

A traffic commissioner must revoke a standard public service vehicle operator’s licence where the operator has no designated transport manager satisfying the statutory requirements. A period of grace protects the licence only if the operator rectifies the situation within the time allowed. Submitting an incomplete application for a proposed transport manager does not rectify the situation. An operator cannot reasonably rely on its dealings with the regulator to assume that no further period of grace is required where it knowingly submitted an incomplete application.

The operator’s standard public service vehicle licence was revoked after its transport manager ceased to be specified. The Traffic Commissioner allowed a period of grace, during which the operator proposed replacement transport managers. Those applications were withdrawn or incomplete. The operator later submitted an incomplete application for Mr Ford and responded to queries after the period of grace had expired.

The operator appealed to the Upper Tribunal, arguing that it had been unfairly led to believe that no further period of grace was needed. The operator did not attend the appeal hearing. The central issues were whether the appeal could proceed in its absence and whether the Traffic Commissioner had erred in revoking the licence.

1. The appeal was dismissed. The Upper Tribunal proceeded in the operator’s absence under rule 38 of the Tribunal Procedure (Upper Tribunal) Rules 2008. The operator had been notified of the hearing, had given no explanation for its absence, and had had a reasonable opportunity to present its case in writing.
2. Under section 17(1) of the Public Passenger Vehicles Act 1981, a traffic commissioner must revoke a standard licence where the designated transport manager no longer satisfies section 14ZA(3). That obligation extends to an operator which has no designated transport manager.
3. Sections 17(1A) and 17(1B), read with article 13.1 of Regulation (EC) No 1071/2009, permit a period of grace for rectifying the situation. If the operator does not rectify the situation within the applicable time limit, the licence must be revoked.
4. Whether the period of grace expired on 9 or 18 April 2023, the operator had not submitted a complete application for authorisation of Mr Ford. The omission of the question concerning the time he would devote to the operator’s transport activities was material. In the circumstances, the operator could not reasonably have believed that the incomplete application was likely to result in authorisation.
5. The operator’s dealings with the Office of the Traffic Commissioner therefore did not unfairly lead it to believe that no further period of grace was required. The Traffic Commissioner had made no material error in revoking the licence.

• Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals Chamber): appeal against the Traffic Commissioner’s decision dismissed.
• Traffic Commissioner for the North West of England Traffic Area: standard public service vehicle operator’s licence revoked on 26 April 2023.