Authority Takes Action To Stop “Hawking” Of Petrol

Press, Volume XCVIII, Issue 28890, 9 May 1959, Page 11

Authority Takes Action To Stop “Hawking” Of Petrol

(From Our Own Revorterl

WELLINGTON, May 8. To prevent illegal deliveries of petrol to farms, the Motor Spirits Licensing Authority recently suspended the licence of Europa Oil Ltd., for a month in part o f North Canterbury. The suspension, which prevented the company from distributing petrol either wholesale or retail in an area which included North Canterbury from the Waimakariri bridge to West Oxford, Cust, and Rangiora, was later reviewed and teduced to seven days. It was also reduced in scope so as not to apply to sales through pumps. The general manager of the Europa company (Mr H. Carmichael) said today that Europa was again operating in all parts of New Zealand. Mr J. Floyd, secretary of the Motor Spirits Licensing Authority, aaid today that it had been brought to the notice of the authority that oil companies had made sales at “other than licensed premises.” Such sales were a form of hawking contrary to the provisions of the Motor Spirits Distribution Act. Petrol had been dropped at farms from companies’ tankers, and resellers had not been advised until later, when they were asked to send an invoice to the customer for the sale. Resellers were involved in considerable embarrassment, including the risk of bad debt. Mr Floyd said that this practice had not been peculiar to the Europa company. Farm deliveries were not legal unless a firm order had been placed with a licensed reseller beforehand. The authority did not wish to prevent a service which was wanted by farmers, but the arrangements for it must

not infringe the statutory requirements.

Recently there had been intense competition among oil companies to extend their direct deliveries of motor spirit to farms, either by tanker waggon or by drum. The authority was advised that most, if not all, of the wholesalers infringed the act. Even after warnings more breaches occurred.

The authority therefore suspended Europa’s licences in part of North Canterbruy. This had been done as a deterrent. Europa was only one of the companies concerned. At the same time directives were issued to all wholesalers. When they all gave satisfactory assurances to the authority that the law would be observed, the suspension of Europa was reduced in scope and cut to seven days.