A FORMER director of a waste management company has been ordered to pay thousands of pounds in compensation after being sued by his ex-employers.

Philip Towers was taken before the High Court by Durham-based Premier Waste Management, accused of taking an unapproved and undisclosed loan from a client.

Following a lengthy legal battle, Mr Towers has been ordered to pay out £7,997.31 to the client.

Mark Stouph, a serving director at Premier, said the firm was extremely pleased with the decision.

Angus Ashman, a solicitor acting for Mr Towers, said his client had no comment to make on the matter.

Mr Towers took two free loans of equipment, an excavator and dumper truck, from Colin Ford, who ran a small machinery business, to rebuild a dilapidated farmhouse and outbuildings, in 2004 and 2005, respectively.

When the machinery had not been returned by mid- 2008, Mr Ford billed Premier for a total of £47,470.

Mr Towers, who had left Premier in December 2007, insisted the loan was a personal matter and nothing to do with his position as a Premier director.

However, Mr Ford’s firm had business dealings with Premier and sued Mr Towers for alleged breach of duty.

At the High Court, in Newcastle, in October 2008, Judge Roger Kaye found against Mr Towers.

Mr Towers appealed, but at the Appeal Court in London, in July, Lord Justice Mummery dismissed the appeal.

Afterwards, Ged Flanagan, a litigator at lawyers Dickinson Dees, which represented Premier, said: “The Court of Appeal found that by not disclosing to the company that he had been offered the use of this equipment, the director had prevented the company from assessing whether this opportunity should instead by exploited by the company.

“The duties of directors in this regard were strict and had been breached. This landmark case has already demonstrated the serious consequences of a director receiving benefits from a third party and failing to disclose transactions in which they are interested, even if the value of those benefits or transactions is small.”

Premier, previously owned by Darlington Borough Council and Durham County Council, is based in Aykley Heads, Durham City.

It has two operational landfill sites, in Coxhoe, County Durham, and Blaydon, Gateshead, nine closed landfill sites, five waste transfer stations, 12 household waste recycling centres and six household civic amenity sites.