Been ‘told’ today that I definetely have to fork out the £19 renewal on my digi tacho card.
I always thought the etiquette was : on agency you provide your own, coming into a company you provide your own if required but, if already with the company they pay & they pay for renewals.
Already asked the question of who pays for the paper discs then? (we still have a few 02’s & 04’s)
On Friday, they’ll ask me for MY card to download it, I brought this one with me so it’s MY card. I’ll inform them that they may download their information from MY card, bought & paid for, for a £10 fee.
Yes, I know that it’s DVLA who own the card, I know that I’m biting my nose off to spite my face (again) & I know that I can 100% claim the costs back through tax. But why should I, they have a whole Dept’ of HR type paper airplane makers & giggling little girls.
P.S. New jobs already lined up, start a week on Monday
I was going to suggest you start looking for a new job if you were gonna look for £10 of them to download your card, but you’ve already done the groundwork.
Chas, the tacho card with your name on it is no more yours than the gym membership card makes the gym yours. Tacho cards are the property of HMGovt and their approved agents. You simply bought into a club with your £19, a club where you have agreed to use the card to record the data that those Agents require. Similarly, your company bought into the club by having tachographs (digi or analogue) and they are required to collect the information that you record. If you die the state requires the return of said card, it does not form part of your estate so you do not own it. As for the money it’s no different to paying your union dues, recovery membership or lap dancing club fees.
In essence you are paying for the right to work as a trucker (along with everything else we pay for), so why should someone else fork out for it?
Just out of interest, when your licence is up for renewal does you company pay for that, or the medical if you need it? The problem as far as the company is concerned is that if you quit tomorrow you would take you digi-card with you, they would have no right to keep it because it is yours, so hence you should be paying for it.
Edit: others have said the same - the usual ‘there have been posts’ didn’t pop up so sorry to ‘state the bleedin’ obvious’.
A plumber wouldn’t turn up to work without his spanners would he? a roofer wouldn’t turn up without a ladder…
Stop been pedantic, pay the £19 and be grateful you have work. I’m sure plenty of people would fork out the £19 of dole money to sit in your comfy chair listening to the radio…
Oh, and IIRC it’s now THE DRIVERS responsibility to ensure the data is available for download. Not the companies as it used to be the case.
Chas:
Already asked the question of who pays for the paper discs then? (we still have a few 02’s & 04’s)
Probably safer for a firm to spend £4 on a box of the CORRECT discs than some knocked of crap that don’t allow the machine to write properly…
I found out this week someone had been given 2 boxes of charts out of an old motor from another depot…
When I told him to check they were 125 v max he screwed his face up, I checked his discs and apparently he had been sitting at 142kph on the motorway… (180 v max discs in a 125 machine)
thelorryist:
Oh, and IIRC it’s now THE DRIVERS responsibility to ensure the data is available for download. Not the companies as it used to be the case.
Nothing changed on that score, the driver has to make his card available, if no one wants to download, his job is done
Incidentally, the regulations state that I should ‘make the card available’. They don’t mention that I cannot charge for this ! My card is available . . . for a £10 fee.
Anyone know what would be a fitting punishment for not making the card available?
If I were an agency driver & parked the lorry at 16.30hrs, presented the card for download & left the premises at 17.00hrs, when did my shift finish? Do I expect to be paid only untill 16.30?
Chas:
If I were an agency driver & parked the lorry at 16.30hrs, presented the card for download & left the premises at 17.00hrs, when did my shift finish? Do I expect to be paid only untill 16.30?
I don’t really understand the relevance of this but as far as I’m concerned having the card downloaded is part of the booking off process, just like handing in the keys, paperwork ec’t, I get paid for it because when I complete my run sheet the booking off time I put allows for time to hand in the keys and get the card downloaded.
So to answer your question If I left the premises at 17:00 immediately after completing the booking off process that’s the time I expect to be paid up.to.
I have to say that I don’t understand your complaint about the company not paying for the card, especially as you’re leaving the company anyway
war1974:
well no wonder they reckon drivers are a whinging moaning bunch! with that attitude i would line up several jobs not just the ‘next one’ its £19 ffs!
+1 Its only the price of a decent curry ffs
I not saying I condone such actions, but anyone on £/hr pay rate could easily recoup the £19 via his wages, just sit an extra 15-30 mins in a layby now and then, just make sure you over do it to profit out of it Likewise if your boss docks you 15mins-1hr
Likewise if your boss docks you 15mins-1hr