Drivers' Hours

 

EU Drivers' Hours: What the Law Says

Breaks from Driving

Drivers must still take a 45-minute break at, or before the end of, 4.5 hours continuous or cumulative driving, however this may only be split in two, the first being no less than 15 minutes, and the second no less than 30 minutes.

Driving Limits

Daily driving should not exceed 9 hours, but may be extended to at most 10 hours no more than twice a week.

Weekly driving must not exceed 56 hours, and the total accumulated driving time over two consecutive weeks must not exceed 90 hours.

Rest

The new rules mean a daily rest of 11 hours in the 24 hour period, which begins at the end of the last daily / weekly rest period, although this may be reduced to a minimum of 9 hours no more than three times between any two weekly rest periods – these reductions no longer require compensation.

The daily rest can be split into two periods, the first must be at least 3 hours long and the second at least 9 hours long.

A full and regular 45 hour rest is required in any two consecutive weeks, however 45 hours can be reduced to 24 hours at base or away from base. Any reductions must be compensated for by the end of the third week following the week in question.

Multi-Manning

If a vehicle is multi-manned, each driver must have a period of at least 9 hours rest within 30 hours of the end of a daily / weekly rest period.

Train / Ferry Concessions

The regular daily rest period of 11 hours may be interrupted no more than twice by other activities, and these should not exceed one hour in total. During the rest period, drivers must have access to a bunk or couchette.

‘Other’ Work

If an in-scope vehicle is driven in any fixed week then the driver must also record all ‘other’ work, even for other employers, and regardless of whether the ‘other’ work involves driving. Periods of availability and break / rest periods must also be recorded. This can be done on the back of an analogue tachograph chart, via the digital tachograph vehicle unit or print out, or in a suitable log book.

Drivers’ Responsibilities

If drivers works for more than one transport company, they must provide each with enough information to allow them to ensure that they are complying with the law.

In-Scope Vehicles

If any of the following types of vehicles are driven, for the uses noted, then the driver will come into the scope of the new Drivers’ Hours Law Regulation on April 11th and will have to keep records of all journeys, and fit a tachograph before 31st December 2007. The driver will also automatically also fall into the scope of the Working Time Regulations.

  • Vehicles with 10 to 17 seats used in the UK for the commercial carriage of passengers
  • Vehicles over 7.5 tonnes which are used for the non-commercial carriage of goods
  • Vehicles used for the carriage of postal articles in the UK which are over 7.5 tonnes or which are used beyond a radius of 50km from their base, or where driving constitutes the driver’s main activity, or that are not used by universal service providers to deliver items as part of the universal service or used internationally
  • Vehicles used by, or under the control of the armed services, fire / public order services, and civil defence, if the vehicles are not owned by them or hired without a driver, or where carriage is not undertaken for the tasks assigned for those services
  • Specialised breakdown vehicles operating further than 100km from their base
  • Vehicles used for the carriage of live animals between farms and local markets or vice versa, or from markets to local slaughterhouses in the UK if that journey is beyond a radius of 50km
  • Agricultural and forestry tractors used for the assigned activities in the UK beyond a radius of 100km from the base of the owner, or the person who has hired the vehicle
  • Gas or electric-powered vehicles not over 7.5 tonnes which are used in the UK to carry goods beyond a radius of 50km from their base.

Many vehicles and operations are only brought in-scope of the new regulations for international journeys, or where the journey is not related to the specific task assigned to the vehicle, including:

  • Vehicles used by the water, gas, electricity, sewerage, and flood protection services
  • Vehicles used in connection with road maintenance and control
  • Vehicles used for refuse collection and disposal other than for door-to-door household collections
  • Vehicles used in connection with telephone, telegraph, radio, and TV broadcasting or detection
  • Vehicles used for transporting circus and funfair equipment, which are not specialised for the purpose
  • Vehicles used for the collection of milk from farms, and the return to farms of milk containers or milk products for use as animal feed.

Out-of-Scope Vehicles

The following vehicles will no longer be covered by the Drivers’ Hours Law:

  • Vehicles with a maximum authorised speed over 30kph but not over 40kph
  • Vehicles used for the non-commercial transportation of humanitarian aid
  • Vehicles up to 7.5 tonnes gvw used for the non-commercial carriage of goods
  • Historic commercial vehicles, the exact nature of which is still to be determined, but is likely to be vehicles registered before 1947
  • Vehicles used, or hired without a driver, which work in agricultural, horticultural, forestry, or fishing within a radius of 100km of their base in the UK
  • Mobile project vehicles with an educational purpose such as a playbus
  • Vehicles used in the UK for driving exams providing they are not being used for the commercial carriage of goods or passengers
  • Vehicles used in the UK for driving instruction or examination for obtaining a Certificate of Professional Competence providing they are not being used for the commercial carriage of goods or passengers
  • Vehicles used exclusively in hub facilities such as ports, railway terminals and airports.

Definition of Transport Undertaking

The new Drivers’ Hours Law references a ‘transport undertaking’ as having legal responsibilities and liabilities  for drivers’ compliance with the rules, and the definition of transport undertaking clearly states that it is the undertaking and not the employer who is responsible for ensuring that the main obligations are met.

A transport undertaking is defined as: “any natural person, any legal person, any association or group of persons without legal personality, whether profit making or not, or any official body, whether having its own legal personality or being dependent on an authority having such personality, which engages in carriage by road, whether for hire or reward or for own account.”

Consignors, freight forwarders, agencies, and tour operators also have an obligation to ensure drivers are able to comply with the law.

Liability of the Transport Undertaking

  • Drivers must not be subject to payments that are related to distances travelled and / or the amount of goods carried if this is likely to endanger road safety
  • Drivers’ work must be organised in such a way that they are able to comply with the regulations
  • Drivers must be properly instructed and the transport undertaking shall make regular checks to ensure that the regulations are complied with
  • The transport undertaking shall be liable, unless proven otherwise, for infringements committed by drivers, even if the infringement was committed in another member state or third country
  • Undertakings, consignors, freight forwarders, tour operators, principal contractors, subcontractors and driver employment agencies shall ensure that contractually agreed time schedules respect these regulations.

Digital Tachograph Data Downloads

  • A transport undertaking that uses digital vehicles must ensure that the data is downloaded from the digital vehicle unit and the driver card regularly
  • The current recommendation is that, in the UK, digital tachograph data is downloaded every 21 days for the driver card and every 3 months for the vehicle unit. This element of the Regulation is currently undergoing consultation and it is likely that the mandatory outcome will be that the maximum time between downloads for driver cards will be 28 calendar days and 56 calendar days for the vehicle unit, with an obligation on the operator to ensure that no data is lost or over-written
  • All downloaded data from the driver card and the vehicle unit must be kept for a period of 12 months following the recording, and must be available either directly or remotely from the premises of the undertaking. Record sheets, tachograph charts, and printouts must be kept in chronological order and in a legible form for at least one year after their use and copies given to the drivers concerned who request them, this includes downloaded data and printouts.

Other Sources of Information

The Department for Transport website offers the facility to download a full copy of the legislation, and they also have a section containing updated guidance on the enforcement of the new Drivers’ Hours Law Regulations.

  • Part 1: What You Need to Know
  • Part 2: Your Questions Answered
  • Part 3: What the Law Says
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