‘Unnecessary’ fines add to hauliers’ headaches

New operators offer unsustainable rates CLIVE EMDON RATE-CUTTING and the critical shortage of qualified and experienced drivers in the industry are issues that need to be resolved, says Gordon Jay, MD of Transworld Road Freight. According to Jay new operators are entering the field at an alarming rate and offering rates that are not sustainable in the long-term. “We know the cost structures and have a good sense of what is possible when dealing with road levies, staffing, and maintenance. A lot of the rates they are offering are below the normal level of running costs.” In addition there is general concern in the industry at the shortage of experienced, qualified drivers, many of whom are being lost to Aids. Newly qualified drivers attract higher insurance excesses while there are additional risks involved in using inexperienced drivers, especially for cross-border work, as they have little idea of how to deal with officials in a foreign country, says Jay. Transworld Road Freight specialises in the Namibia route. The company moves 80-90 tons of general cargo from Johannesburg to Windhoek each week and 40-50 tons from the company’s Cape Town depot, says Jay “We also handle a lot of bonded cargo.” Referring to the problems attached to incidental costs such as unnecessary fines incurred in routine customs checks, Jay says on the Namibian route the Skilpadshek customs on the South African side “are a law unto themselves”. He gave the example of a R1 500 fine for a truck’s registration being wrongly entered in documentation. His January letter to the Customs department has yet to be acknowledged. At the Botswana Pioneers’ Gate one of his drivers was instructed to move his load more towards the rear axle. He did so and when he reached the Mamuno border post he was fined 5 600 Pula (R7280) for being overloaded on the back axle. When Jay suggested going to court over the issue, he was told the truck would be impounded until then. “They would hold the truck as ransom which is a totally unacceptable practice.”