Hauliers are waiting in trepidation for the government’s budget at the end of October. More fuel rises? More restrictions for lorries on our road networks?
For the first time in 30 years, I will be watching this year’s budget without the sense of dread about the further affects it will have on my business. Yes, there is some sense of relief, but I will have a sense of dread for the industry, and the hundreds of hauliers around the UK, and their employees.
In 2023, a total of 494 British haulage businesses entered insolvency, nearly double the number two years earlier. This was the latest data from the Department for Business and Trade and it also predicted that a third of businesses in the haulage sector were at risk in 2024.
And I’m devastated to say that our own business was one of them. Cartwright Brothers Haulage based in Lincolnshire finally closed its doors in July – 80 years after my father and three uncles set up the company. Over those eight decades, there were always highs and lows as there are in the haulage industry.
Our reputation was excellent, and our customer base was enviable – working with many household names. We employed 100 people and ran – at the business’s peak – 60 vehicles, both nationally and internationally.
Cartwright Bros won the esteemed Pallex Depot of the Year for three years on the trot – and we were also recognised for our contribution to local education and R & D. Cartwright Bros was BRC double A rated, ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 18801.
Not only that, but due to our expertise in the haulage of dangerous goods by road, we were the leading haulier of fireworks in the UK.
The four entrepreneurial Cartwright brothers set up the business in 1944 – just before the end of the second world war, and with just one wagon. The country was in crisis and the brothers, former farmers, saw an opportunity for transportation and they grew the business slowly.
I cannot explain the sense of grief for the business, our people and our family when Cartwright Brothers closed its doors after celebrating eight decades in January. So many years of hard work and latterly sleepless nights and endless conversations with our banks.
So as we head to the budget and into 2025, what’s in store for other hauliers? The answer is, probably ‘more’. I’d like to be more positive but I expect more fuel rises, more government legislation, more difficulty for those trying to stablise their businesses and look after their staff.
It seems to me, and others, that the government is oblivious to the current state of the haulage industry. It appears to be blindly pushing lorries off the road but it’s madness to think that the British public could do without them. The fact is, we all need lorries. We need lorries to transport potatoes from A to B, cereals from C to D, and peas from E to F.
According to HMRC, in 2022 the haulage industry moved 226 million tonnes of food by road by GB registered HGVs in the UK. As we all know, food is one of many commodities that can’t be moved by rail, so it is essential for the UK economy to keep our haulage companies in the black and our supply chains moving.
When The Bank of England’s rate rises from 3.5% at the start of the year to five per cent at the end of the second quarter, it hit us hard. Like many others Cartwright financed its fleets and even our running costs.
There seemed to let up to the way debt rises continually increased, and without warning, meaning that we had little chance to forward plan – and instead, manage Cartwright Brothers on an exhausting day-to-day basis.
When debt payments rise continuously, it creates a perfect storm. Interest rates, coupled with high inflation, meant that running the company became a constant, never-ending struggle – with no way of recovering.
Making so many people redundant – many of whom had been with us for decades and had called our friends – was a horrific experience that I’d never want to repeat. Many of our people worked with us for decades.
The financial impact on haulage companies has been severe. With slim profit margins and increasing operating costs, many businesses like Cartwright Brothers have struggled to stay afloat. Rising fuel prices significantly impacted our bottom line, making it difficult to maintain profitability. Moreover, the ongoing driver shortage led to increased labour costs, making it even more challenging for us to remain financially viable.
There is little margin in the haulage business and due to a reliance on debt finance for new vehicles and day-to-day costs, margins have gotten tighter. As haulier’s overheads have risen, more and more have found themselves in debt with big names and successful operators feeling the pinch.
Managing a family business for the last 30 years with my cousin John was an honour and a sense of pride that we were carrying on the family name, creating jobs, supporting so many farmers and food businesses in Lincolnshire and the East Midlands. So it was a huge blow when we had to accept defeat and call it a day.
We had done everything in our power to keep the business running but every single month brought a new and almost impossible challenge.
I wish all hauliers well. I feel your pain, and let’s hope that the government listens to industry leaders – and hauliers – in order to understand that the haulage industry is in crisis and that something urgently needs to be done to keep it alive.