A Study Manual of Professional Competence in Road Haulage

A Complete Study Course for the OCR CPC Examination

David Lowe

• Publisher: Kogan Page
• Year: 2010
• ISBN:
  9780749459338
• Edition: 12
• Topic: Technologie et ingénierie
• Subtopic: Transport et ingénierie de l'automobile

This latest edition of a well-established and highly respected manual provides a comprehensive course of study for anyone taking the Oxford Cambridge and RSA (OCR) Certificate of Professional Competence (CPC) examination. With all the information presented in a highly accessible format, this book is effectively a complete study course, ideal for use as a self-teaching aid.Updated to account for EU and UK legislative changes, this revised 12th edition includes typical case study scenarios used in the examination, and sample questions and answers. It is also essential reading for anyone employed in, or wishing to enter, the road freight transport and distribution industries as well as transport supervisors and managers who want to brush up on their knowledge.

Introduction

UK legislation (implementing EU Directive 561/74/EEC) specifying new standards of professional competence for those responsible for the operation of goods vehicles was originally introduced on 1 January 1978 as one of the conditions under which a Standard Operator’s licence may be granted for carrying goods for hire or reward. This Directive has subsequently been replaced by Directives 96/26/EC and most recently 98/76/EC.

Provisions in the regulations originally enabled certain people in the road transport industry to claim their ‘professional competence’ on the grounds of qualifying experience gained by working in transport prior to 1975. This scheme finally ended on 31 December 1979. People who did not qualify under this ‘Grandfather Rights’ scheme may satisfy the requirements through membership, at specified grades, of certain of the professional transport institutes. For those who do not qualify by these methods, and for young people and other newcomers to the industry, an examination system provides a qualification to meet the legal requirements for professional competence.

This study manual is aimed principally at those people taking up positions in transport who need or want to become professionally competent by examination. Its purpose is to provide a comprehensive and self-contained course of study based on both the EU Directive and the official OCR syllabus, which leads the reader to a point where both the national and international examinations in road haulage may be taken successfully.

The manual enables examination candidates to study privately, at home and elsewhere, either when it is convenient to devote long periods to study or when just a few spare moments are available for revision. It is self-contained, providing sufficient knowledge of all the syllabus subjects to meet the examination requirements. To avoid unnecessary length and volume the information has been presented as briefly as possible, dispensing with irrelevant narrative and concentrating on the basic informative facts which the reader needs to learn to pass the examination.

The syllabus covers a broad subject range, from matters directly concerning legal and administrative aspects of road haulage operation to technical matters of goods vehicle construction, use and maintenance, and road safety measures, and then on to the much wider issues of management such as business administration, financial controls, marketing, legal knowledge, and the complexities of social legislation.

Overall, the extent of the syllabus is such that the successful examination candidate can justifiably claim to have acquired a sound grounding in the broader aspects of management and the running of a business, in addition to the more specialized knowledge of road haulage operation. It is this aspect of wider education which will undoubtedly induce many other managers in transport, who have qualified for professional ‘competence’ on the grounds of past experience, to attempt the examination to prove that they too can meet the demanding standards it imposes. Alternatively, they may just wish to brush up their knowledge even if they decide against the rigours of sitting the examination. For these people, the manual will make valuable reading and reference material.

While the scope of the study syllabus is broad and the nature of the examination such that the candidate’s knowledge is tested in full, it should be recognized that there is much more to managing a road haulage fleet than just passing the professional competence examination. Prospective professional managers will need to broaden their knowledge further with more detailed reading on legal points, financial control and management techniques, marketing and the intricacies of industrial relations. But reading alone will not produce the truly professional manager. Transport is an industry where practical operating experience is a vital ingredient of success and examination candidates who read this manual should also seek ways of widening their practical knowledge.

SPECIAL NOTE 1

It should be noted that this manual is intended purely as a practical study guide to legal matters relevant to the Certificate of Professional Competence examinations – and only to matters current at the time of writing. It is not a definitive legal work of reference for operational purposes and should not be used as such. For any purpose other than preparation for the CPC examinations, readers are advised to check the legislation itself before committing time or expenditure to any particular course of action. Any transport operator or goods vehicle driver needing detailed advice is recommended to seek this through normal legal channels. The author and publishers accept no responsibility whatsoever for decisions taken or other irrevocable actions based on the contents herein.

SPECIAL NOTE 2

Professional Competence for transport managers as referred to in this study manual should not be confused with the new scheme of Professional Competence for lorry and bus drivers (the DCPC) introduced under Directive 2003/59/EC which came into effect for coach and bus drivers from 10 September 2008 and for goods vehicle drivers from 10 September 2009. A totally different training regime applies for the DCPC to that described in this manual. Full details of this can be found in David Lowe’s Professional LGV Driver’s Handbook (2nd edition) published by Kogan Page in 2008.

Requirements for professional competence

A succession of European Union Council Directives since 1974 (ie 74/561/EEC, 89/438/EEC, 96/26/EC and most recently 98/76/EC) have set out requirements for admission to the occupation of road haulage operations. These provisions are currently implemented in the UK by means of the Goods Vehicles (Licensing of Operators) Act 1995 which in section 13 (3)[c] and Schedule 3 (7–15) requires that transport operators who wish to engage in the carriage of goods for hire or reward and, consequently, hold a standard Operator’s Licence, must satisfy the requirement of professional competence with either the firm’s proprietor holding the qualification or by the employment of a person who meets the qualification.

People who were responsible for road transport operations under an Operator’s Licence before 1 January 1975 could qualify for professional competence by virtue of their experience (known as ‘Grandfather Rights’) but the issue of certificates (ie CPCs) under this scheme ended on 31 December 1979.

People who did not qualify under the Grandfather Rights provisions may gain ‘exemption’ through membership in an appropriate grade of one of the professional transport institutes (see page 203), thereby qualifying for professional competence.

Anyone else who did not qualify under the Grandfather Rights provisions or who is not exempt on the basis mentioned above must sit the official OCR examination in order to qualify for professional competence.

Transfer of professional competence qualification

Holders of the professional competence qualification gained in Great Britain can transfer the qualification to Northern Ireland or to any other member state of the European Union should they wish to operate in road haulage or obtain a position as a transport manager in any of those states. (From 1 January 2007, there are 27 member states of the European Union. They are Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom. A further three states – Croatia, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Turkey – are lining up ready to join in due course. CPC examination candidates should be fully aware of the correct names and locations of all the present 27 EU member states and the three candidate countries mentioned above and the names of their capital cities, plus neighbouring states and members of EFTA and the EEA and the Schengen Agreement countries. It is also useful to know the major traffic routes and waterways through these countries (eg the rivers Rhine, Danube, Elbe, etc), the seaways that they border (eg the North Sea, the Baltic, the Mediterranean, etc) – with relevant ferry crossings – and the mountain ranges that inhibit direct traffic flows between major cities, ports and industrial areas (the Pyrenees, which form a physical barrier between France and Spain, and the Alps, which lie between France, Switzerland, Austria and northern Italy, for instance). Examination questions may be asked on these matters directly, or a need for the knowledge may arise indirectly in answering other questions. Useful information about the EU – its structure, how it is organized, the member states, etc – can be found at http://europa.eu/index_en.htm (archived at https://perma.cc/7QKS-Y9V8).)

A Certificate of Qualification for this purpose can be obtained on application (and on payment of the relevant fee) to a Traffic Commissioner. Similarly, any person holding nationality of an EU member state (as well as those from Northern Ireland) may obtain confirmation of their qualification in their own country and apply to use it in the UK.

CPC syllabus

The following list of subjects for study is as specified in Annex I to EU Directive 98/76/EC with the addition of an indication of some of the specific topics that are likely to be examined. As mentioned previously, the OCR examination specifications have a considerable overlap of subjects, with some topics featuring in two or even three examination units, but in this study manual such topics have been integrated. However, under each main subject heading below – from the EU Directive syllabus – an indication is given of where the material relates to the relevant unit in the OCR syllabus.

A. CIVIL LAW

Relevant OCR units: 1, 2 and 6

Assessment objectives

Candidates must:

1. A1.
   be familiar with the main types of contract used in road transport and with the rights and obligations arising therefrom (topics covered: Contracts: legal obligations; subcontracting; legal duties of agents, employers and employees);
2. A2.
   be capable of negotiating a legally valid transport contract, notably with regard to conditions of carriage (topics covered: Legal obligations: capacity to contract; specific performance; liability; lien; laws of agency);
3. A...

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Contents
• Preface
• Acknowledgements
• Introduction
• Requirements for professional competence
• CPC syllabus
• Correlation: EU Directive list of subjects (Annex 1) and OCR syllabus units
• The official examination
• Part 1 Civil law
• Part 2 Commercial law
• Part 3 Social law
• Part 4 Fiscal law
• Part 5 Business and financial management
• Part 6 Access to the market
• Part 7 Technical standards and aspects of operation
• Part 8 Road safety
• Appendix I Typical examination questions
• Appendix II Answers to typical examination questions
• Appendix III OCR case study scenarios and specimen marks
• Appendix IV Sample questions for the international examination (Unit 6)
• Index
• Copyright