Transport and logistics

We help you achieve success across the supply chain, managing risk at all stages, including manufacturing, procurement, warehousing and distribution.

Whether working locally, or across our global network we deliver tailored solutions in rapidly changing areas, such as compliance and regulatory, as well as counter-fraud detection and investigation, litigation and dispute resolution, commercial and corporate matters, claims and risk management.

Our approach is unashamedly solution-focused, anticipating the challenges you might face as well as delivering customised courses of action that get you the results you need.

Our team is regularly instructed to advise transport and logistics clients on Police and HSE investigations arising from fatal accidents and incidents involving serious injuries to employees and members of the public.

Our breadth of expertise in the sector means clients are confident in instructing us to advise them on their Operator's Licence responsibilities. We regularly appear before the Traffic Commissioner at preliminary hearings, public inquiries and conduct hearings. We are also no strangers to advising on DVSA inspections and enforcement actions.

To support our clients, we offer bespoke training to help them develop their safety culture and understand their responsibilities to the various regulators.

In addition to the above, our Corporate Insurance & Risk (CIR) is a division of DAC Beachcroft, created to service and manage liabilities and risk for corporate clients with specialist capability in transport and logistics. See our Corporate Insurance & Risk page for more details.

Featured experience

We act for bus and rail operator, The Go-Ahead Group, and its many subsidiaries on its large real estate portfolio. Recent transactions include the following:

• Acting on the freehold purchase of a bus garage for a consideration of £8m+ for the client’s own occupation to facilitate its relocation from leasehold premises, including advising on contaminated land issues, the applicability of TOGC provisions to the sale (initially disputed by the seller) and securing early occupation via a licence to occupy
• Advising on the sale of a site in Hove to a residential developer conditional on planning for the construction of 80 residential units plus ground floor commercial space, conditional on securing the release of restrictive covenants against residential use, including planning coverage
• The acquisition of industrial land in Barking for redevelopment purposes by way of share purchase for a purchase price of £13.5m, including the transfer of extraneous properties out of the target company as a pre-condition to purchase
• Advising on the Group’s program of electrification of its bus garages including advising on the use of permitted development rights for the installation of power and refuelling infrastructure, negotiating leases for the installation of such infrastructure, and providing construction advice on the preparation of NEC contracts and negotiation of Z clauses
• Advising Go-Ahead on their new arrangements with Transport for Greater Manchester following the introduction of a new bus franchise system, the Bee Network. This included advising on the terms of the Franchising Agreement as part of the initial bid process, disposing of Go-Ahead's existing freehold depot to TfGM and taking lease of 2 new depots from TfGM.