The Roots incident - the truth
There has been a load of rubbish being posted on the internet about The Roots incident in Belgium. Please click here to read the facts.
Are you being taken for a ride ?
Probably not but it is best to make sure you are not. Compared to the USA, coach operators are highly regulated in Europe. The problem is that to a degree the law can not handle the bad guys. Legitimate operators are licensed and in some countries, especially the United Kingdom, have to follow stringent procedures to retain their licenses. The procedures are all safety based and penalties are imposed for poor maintenance and failure to keep to legal driving hours. Drivers now must have 35 hours of classroom training every 5 years. Unfortunately there are operators who find ways to place themselves outside the scope of the rules and therefore fall outside the licensing regime and often these operators have a poor maintenance or safety record.
One example is that certain UK operators (with poor maintenance records) have been registering their coaches as motorhomes. Because they are not registered as Public Carrying Vehicles (PCVs) they fall outside the control of the main licensing authority called VOSA. Because insurers will not insure motorhomes for "hire or reward" that means these vehicles are also not insured. Reputable companies like Jumbocruiser will gladly fax you copies of our Operator's License and insurance and UK operators must carry a license disk in their windscren.
Another situation was recently reported during a magazine interview with an anonymous UK operator (not Jumbocruiser) where a major competitor was illegally targetting the UK market by keeping foreign registered coaches in this country on a semi-permanent basis. This is called "cabotage" and is legal on an occasional basis but not on a persistent basis. A year ago, 7 Belgian trucks were impounded because they were consistently illegally operating in the UK in order to flout the stricter UK licensing regime. Click here to see an article. At present, VOSA can only impound trucks but from October 2009 they will also be authorised to impound coaches and our understanding is that they have a specific interest in protecting the UK sleeper coach market from unfair competition.
Of course it will not improve your reputation as a tour manager if your coach is impounded for operating illegally in the UK so if your tour starts and ends in the UK you should really be using a UK operator if you suspect the coach operator makes a habit of such hirings. The same suggestion applies in other countries of course. Please bear in mind that cabotage means the picking up and dropping off in a single foreign country to the where the coach is registered. Ocassional cabotage is legal if properly documented (with a waybill) but not persistent cabotage.
Just to be certain, there are several legitimate, quality, UK operators and hopefully you will select Jumbocruiser as one of them for your next hiring.
Drivers and owner of transport firm jailed for tachograph offences
Mark Howdon, Director and Transport Manager of Throckley, Tyne & Wear-based hauliers MM Howdon Ltd, were jailed for 15 months. The judge said nobody should underrate the seriousness of such offences, which not only impinged on road safety, but also the perpetrators’ liberty.
Two drivers were also jailed for four and three months after pleading guilty to offences of falsification. Judge Evans said their mindset was such that they daily put at risk the lives of other road users and the public.
A total of 20 drivers pleaded guilty to various offences of falsification. Others were given community punishment orders and fined, and all now have criminal records. (extract from routeOne)
Please remember that anyone, including tour managers, inciting a driver to exceed his legal hours also risks punishment.
Ways to save money
Often when booking a coach for a long European tour, bands only look at the actual price quoted but do not consider other issues. One thing we have noticed is that American bands often negotiate their appearance fees in dollars and yet pay us in pounds or Euros which really makes no sense. The problem is that by the time you have done your deal and converted to US dollars, then converted back to either Euros or Pounds to pay us, you have probably lost around 8% of the value of the money concerned. Why not do the gig for Euros and have a Euro bank account to receive the money. Pay your suppliers in the Euros you have earned then any excess cash can be converted to dollars by your own bank as and when required.
We also have other techniques to save you money including withholding taxes. Please feel free to call to discuss these issues. If you do not expect to make a profit in the current tax year or simply have cash flow issues, even allowing for bilateral tax agreements what we propose may save you all your back holding tax liabilities. Feel free to discuss with us once you have booked a bus what we can do for you.
New legislation affecting double drivers
From September 2008 all European Union coach drivers will require not just their vocational license to prove they can drive a coach but also a new Certificate of Professional Competence. Read More.
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