Haulage bosses ordered to pay back over £1.6m or face more time in jail.

Following a joint operation between Cumbria police and VOSA the bosses of Boyle Transport Limited have been ordered to pay over £1.6m after benefiting by £10m from their criminal tachograph scam.  

The two directors were given custodial sentences after they both pleaded guilty to conspiracy at Carlisle Crown Court in April 2011. Fifteen of the drivers employed at Boyle Transport also received suspended sentences and were made to carry out unpaid community work after pleading guilty to making false tachograph records.

After completing their custodial sentences the two Directors were back at Carlisle Crown Court for a hearing under the Proceeds of Crime Act. The firm had benefited to the tune of £10m from their criminal conduct and the Directors have been given six months to pay over £1.6m. If the money is not paid in that time they will have to serve an extra four and five and half year prison sentences.

Officers initially stopped Boyle Transport trucks in October 2008. Every digital tachograph owned by the firm had been interfered with and drivers had been driving up to 22 hours per day and failed to take their lawful breaks.

This has to be one of the worst cases of abuse of drivers’ hours and tachograph fraud reported.  Despite the custodial sentences, having to pay over £1.6m after benefitting to the tune of £10m seems a little light. What do you think?