Warnings over stowaways at ‘secure’ French truckstops

The ‘secure’ truckstops that British hauliers are told to use in France to prevent stowaways entering their vehicles before they return to the UK are in fact becoming target destinations for would-be clandestine entrants, recent allegations suggest.

Early August saw claims that at least three British trucks may have been broken into at the truckstops, and in two cases the stowaways made it to England.

Kevin Hopper, managing director of Brian Yeardley Continental, reported that two of his general cargo trucks were broken into by stowaways in the secure truck stop in Calais.

In one case, he said, the driver noticed this when making his statutory security checks and was able to eject the unwanted passengers, but in the other two men made their way right to the front of the trailer and escaped detection until the vehicle reached the border check in Calais, where they were detected by sniffer dogs.

Mr Hopper said the stowaways told border officials that they had paid non-British drivers to smuggle them into the park and facilitate their entry into the trailers of British-registered trucks. This was confirmed by UK Border Force officials to the driver, Mr Hopper said.

The driver and the company have now each been hit by penalties of £20,000 – £10,000 each per stowaway – and Mr Hopper has been told that if the driver cannot pay, then the company must pay on his behalf, making a total of £40,000.

Mr Hopper is outraged, as he said his drivers follow UKBF guidelines against stowaways: “No one at UKBF is even looking at the evidence and circumstances of this: the driver and company involved in these immigrants breaking into our trucks.

“They are just sending fines out to people [who], thanks to this government, can’t afford to pay them.”

In a separate case, Algarve Removals experienced four stowaways breaking out through the roof of one of its trucks in Maldon, Essex after it had returned from the continent.

Algarve Removals said it believed the individuals gained access during the driver’s overnight stay at a secure truck stop near Rouen in France. The truck had reportedly cleared inspection by French border police and UKBF in Calais prior to crossing to the UK. Essex Police said its officers had attended and searched the area.

A Home Office spokesperson told : “We are relentless in our pursuit of people-smuggling gangs including those who use lorries and other clandestine routes.

“The Clandestine Entrant Civil Penalty Scheme exists to protect the UK’s border and encourage appropriate vehicle security measures.

“Each case is considered on its individual circumstances and there are procedures in place for operators to provide evidence, object to penalties and seek reviews of decisions.”