The boss of a Newhouse haulage firm has been given a two-year industry ban after an investigation and public inquiry into drivers’ practices. Scotland’s Traffic Commissioner, Joan Aitken, said the operator had made ‘gross errors of judgment’. The inquiry heard that the offender held a digital tachograph driver card despite having failing eyesight and no entitlement to drive HGVs. The driver card is used with the digital tachograph to capture the work carried out by professional HGV drivers. The card had been used illegally on 36 occasions and disguised periods of driving to avoid compliance with drivers’ hours law. The company had six vehicles based at Newhouse and Larkhall. On its website it tells potential customers it is committed to ‘following all safety and Government guidelines’. However, Miss Aitken said the offences were so serious that if she didn’t revoke the licence she would be ‘undermining the purposes of the licensing regime which are road safety and fair competition’. If you need help or advice in managing drivers' hours, simply complete the Smartanalysis information request form and we will get straight back to you. Source Motherwell TIMES