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Former MD of Welsh operator Padarn Bus to be jailed

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pemma

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Route One said:
John David Hulme, 55, the former Managing Director of Llanberis-based Padarn Bus, has been found guilty of making inflated claims about concessionary fare passenger numbers to Gwynedd County Council as part of a fiddle, and falsifying documents to back them up.

He has been told that a prison sentence is “inevitable.”

In total, £1.3m was fraudulently claimed by the company over three years.

Mr Hulme pleaded not guilty at Caernarfon Crown Court to fraud by making false representations between 1 July 2011 and 31 December 2012 about the number of concessionary fare passengers carried by the company; and to false accounting by falsifying claim forms submitted for accounting purposes.

The Court heard that between July 2011 and March 2014 the false claims totalled £814,655.

The prosecution said that until he was suspended by the company in December 2012, Mr Hulme was responsible for making the false claims and for generating the false documents supporting the claims.

Operations Director Darren Price had pleaded guilty to similar charges of fraud covering the period after Mr Hulme was suspended. False claims were made for £495,877.08 in the period until Mr Hulme was suspended.

Following the verdict, Judge Mervyn Hughes QC warned Mr Hulme that a custodial sentence was inevitable. He told him: “It became clearer and clearer during the course of this trial that you were the author and perpetrator of this fraud right up to December 2012 and you gave instructions to Darren Price so he was able to continue it.

“Although you are not charged with that, he wouldn’t have been able to do so if you hadn’t given those instructions.”

Mr Hulme and Mr Price are bailed until sentencing on Thursday (24 March).

http://www.route-one.net/legal/padarn-md-to-be-jailed/

Presumably this type of fraud will be harder once all operators have readers for ENCTS passes but even then it won't stop operators claiming all pass holders travelled to the final destination of the bus regardless of where they travelled to.
 
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Zoidberg

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Busaholic

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http://www.route-one.net/legal/padarn-md-to-be-jailed/

Presumably this type of fraud will be harder once all operators have readers for ENCTS passes but even then it won't stop operators claiming all pass holders travelled to the final destination of the bus regardless of where they travelled to.

On the principle of 'pour encourager les autres' the jail terms given will have a salutary effect on the practice, which I would imagine was more prevalent two or three years ago when council recompense was at much higher levels in most areas than it is now. This particular problem may also have occurred more often in Wales and Scotland than in England, both because of the different ways in which the schemes were set up, and because smaller operators operate a greater percentage of services in those two countries : this is NOT an attack on smaller bus companies, just to point out that one or two crooked individuals can impose their will easier in that environment, particularly if they are, in effect, the owners.
 

323235

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I remember seeing Arriva drivers printing off lots of concessionary tickets near the end of journeys to bump up passenger numbers back in 2008 time.
 

pemma

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I remember seeing Arriva drivers printing off lots of concessionary tickets near the end of journeys to bump up passenger numbers back in 2008 time.

In 2007 a local councillor complained that Arriva North West weren't issuing tickets on the 300 route (were cash single fares being recorded?) A few months later Arriva told Cheshire CC they would no longer run the 300 route as it wasn't still profitable.

I've seen GHA drivers who work the 09:15 Knutsford-Macclesfield print off a load of tickets in advance of arriving at Chelford where they know a number of pass holders will be waiting (due to it being the first service after 09:30.) No checks made as to who's going in to Macclesfield town centre or who's alighting at the hospital or sooner.
 
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Bletchleyite

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I remember seeing Arriva drivers printing off lots of concessionary tickets near the end of journeys to bump up passenger numbers back in 2008 time.

I've seen this as well by smaller, less reputable operators.

The issuing of a free ticket seems a pointless waste of paper, but it seems the idea of it is to make this kind of fraud very visible.

It's probably harder to do it now the passes have to be scanned, though.
 

pemma

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The issuing of a free ticket seems a pointless waste of paper, but it seems the idea of it is to make this kind of fraud very visible.

It's probably harder to do it now the passes have to be scanned, though.

I noticed this appeared on the GHA Coaches website recently

Concessionary Pass holders will still to continue to swipe their cards onto the machine, however we are trying to be greener and trying not to waste paper so these new machines will simply beep and show a green light to let you know your pass has been accepted and you will no longer receive a ticket.

Should you wish to contact the company about your journey then each bus will display a large fleet number near the cab so we can identify the driver and vehicle at the time you travelled.

http://www.ghacoaches.co.uk/smart-ticketing-arrives-in-greater-manchester/
 

Welshman

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It can initially be a little confusing to those who've recently joined the ranks of the Concessionary Pass holders!

Presenting mine while travelling round North Wales, I've noticed that on Express Bus services I would receive a paper "free" ticket, and incur the wrath of the driver if I did not collect it, but left it clogging-up the machine!

Now, if I transfer to a GHA service, I learn from the above post that I'll just get a beep and a green light. Which is some acknowledgment I may go and seek a seat.

Going back to Arriva, I get none of these - just a slight nod from the driver if I happen to be looking at her/him at the right time, or left standing there if I'm not!
 
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