One Third of UK Hauliers At Risk Of Collapse Amidst Surge In Operating Costs

One Third of UK Hauliers At Risk Of Collapse Amidst Surge In Operating Costs

It has been estimated that nearly one third of UK Hauliers are at risk of collapse as a result of increased operating costs driven mainly by the record price of fuel. Accountancy firm Price Bailey checked credit scores of nearly 100,000 businesses within the UK haulage sector. The number of road haulage businesses placed in the risk category has doubled over the past 12 months to nearly 28,000. In March, the price of diesel surged 22% and although in some cases firms have levied a fuel surcharge to customers, the volatility of the price makes the capturing of the increased costs difficult to manage.

The increased costs of fuel, high wage demands & increases in other consumables such as Ad-Blue have created a perfect storm that will drive up the price of every single items transport by road. This has created some cash flow problems as a result of fixed payment terms from customers and huge increases in immediate cash expenditures and will ultimately put some haulage companies at risk of collapse.

Martin Fryer

Martin Fryer is Managing Director of a specialist haulage company as well as a qualified transport manager with experience across multiple different industries. He holds a BA (Hons) in Logistics and is a chartered member of the Institute of Logistics and Transport.

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