Nugent International Limited v Presiding Officer
[2024] UKUT 8 (AAC)
NI Truck Rentals Ltd v Head of the Transport Regulation Unit
7 March 2023
[2023] UKUT 60 (AAC)
Upper Tribunal
A company's truck was taken away because their driving license was cancelled. They tried to get it back, and won the argument about who owned the truck, but lost the argument about why it was taken in the first place because they should have known better.
Key Facts
- •NI Truck Rentals Ltd's operator's licence was revoked on 23 June 2021.
- •On 14 August 2021, a vehicle owned by NI Truck Rentals Ltd was detained.
- •The Head of the Transport Regulation Unit (TRU) refused the application for the return of the detained vehicle.
- •NI Truck Rentals Ltd appealed the TRU's decision.
- •The appeal concerned the ownership of the vehicle and the grounds for its detention.
Legal Principles
It is unlawful to use a goods vehicle on a road for the carriage of goods without a licence.
Goods Vehicles (Licensing of Operators) Act (Northern Ireland) 2010, section 1(1)
An authorised person may detain a vehicle if they believe it has been used in contravention of section 1 of the 2010 Act.
Goods Vehicles (Enforcement Powers) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2012, regulation 3
The owner of a detained vehicle may apply for its return within 21 days of the publication of notice of detention.
Goods Vehicles (Enforcement Powers) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2012, regulation 9(1)
The owner must prove ownership and that one of the grounds for return in regulation 4(3) is met.
Nolan Transport v VOSA & Secretary of State for Transport (T/2011/60)
The Upper Tribunal reviews the material before the Head of the TRU and determines if the decision was 'plainly wrong'.
NT/2013/52 & 53 Fergal Hughes v DOENI & Perry McKee Homes Ltd v DOENI [2013] UKUT 618 AAC
Outcomes
Appeal allowed in part.
The Upper Tribunal found that the Head of the TRU's decision regarding ownership was 'plainly wrong'. Sufficient evidence existed to show NI Truck Rentals Ltd owned the vehicle. However, the grounds for detention were upheld as the company's actions indicated constructive knowledge of the licence revocation.
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