Struggling haulage firms warn UK’s essential supplies could grind to a halt without government support amid Covid-19 crisis

THE Road Haulage Association has warned that Britain’s essential supply chains could grind to a halt amid the coronavirus (Covid-19) crisis, as almost half of the UK’s lorries have been taken off the roads.

Many small and medium-sized haulage fleets have reported that they are struggling for work, and are having to send drivers home. In fact, RHA’s recent survey reveals that 46 per cent of the lorries have been taken off the road since the coronavirus crisis began.

As the main income for many independent haulage firms is delivering equipment for events, many are struggling to stay afloat because all large gatherings have been cancelled due to the UK’s lockdown, according to the RHA.

RHA Chief Executive Richard Burnett warns that many UK haulage firms are on the “brink of collapse” and “in danger of going out of business permanently,” unless they get more help from the government. “Businesses are at massive risk from banks and fuel suppliers withdrawing credit and hauliers will collapse quickly if credit is not sustained and extended,” he stated.

Burnett said that the measures the government have come up with “simply don’t work.” “They need immediate cash injections to stay afloat so they can continue to keep the UK economy moving,” he added.

Shops and factories rely on hundreds of small independent hauliers to ferry goods to them from distribution centres and ports. If they go under, the UK’s fleet of lorries, which deliver essentials “will stand idle,” he warned.