Hi as a new driver and spending out on lessons I was over the moon to pass and be on the road and now a good six months later I can see why there is a shortage of drivers, as coming from a different background of work and been in my early 40’s got some years and experience with jobs and life. For one is the complicated driving rules I’m not thick but good god why make them so complicated which also put a fear into me because if I make mistakes and get infringements which I have vosa will jump on me like a ton of bricks there seems to be no leeway what’s so ever with them or my employer I am only human and make genuine errors like everyone else plus my work have a policy of so meny infringements in a year and your down the road and its not meny so that is added pressure as well, why there is not a grace period for new drivers to get there head around the rules iv no idea at least just for a couple of months or so. There seem to be constant battles with management who do not understand the job either in short there is much added pressure on the job that is not needed and strict rules which add to it I’m beginning to think iv made a mistake coming into this profession
yer wtd is one of the worst things about this job. hence why im trying to get into road sweepers, classed and plant mashinery, so little or no taco agrow.
Your employer is doing the right thing telling you and hopefully trying to get you to see where you didn’t quite adhere to the rules. You need to work quite hard to get serious ones, so as long as you are taking care, you should be okay. Sometimes companies make 1 minute over sound like the end of the world, whereas in reality the DVSA would only be bothered if you were doing it repeatedly.
I agree…
The drivers hours rules are a contradictory mess that confuse many drivers including both the rookies and old timers.
Best suggestion from me is don’t look at any of the rules as targets. They are maximums and minimums. Keep trying to max out all the time and you’ll come a cropper pretty ■■■■ quick. You can if you try, work ridiculously long hours with only 15 minutes off. Don’t do that, aim to be having a break well before 6 hours have elapsed and you shouldn’t go far wrong.
You’ve picked an industry that actively punishes mistakes with points on your licence (affecting your personal car insurance),fines and if you’re a really bad boy, jail sentences.
Welcome to the jungle.
No idea why so many people find it so hard. Unless you’re double manning, trying to compensate for reduced weeklies etc it ain’t rocket science.
Any old timer who is still struggling with EU drivers hours regs a quarter of a century after they came out should have their licence revoked.
Conor:
No idea why so many people find it so hard. Unless you’re double manning, trying to compensate for reduced weeklies etc it ain’t rocket science.Any old timer who is still struggling with EU drivers hours regs a quarter of a century after they came out should have their licence revoked.
The only people who have problems with it is people who work mad hours going to the wire every day, chasing there tail every day for a extra 1 hours pay
Bigtruck3:
Conor:
No idea why so many people find it so hard. Unless you’re double manning, trying to compensate for reduced weeklies etc it ain’t rocket science.Any old timer who is still struggling with EU drivers hours regs a quarter of a century after they came out should have their licence revoked.
The only people who have problems with it is people who work mad hours going to the wire every day, chasing there tail every day for a extra 1 hours pay
This ^^^^^^^
Way I see it some firms are way over the top with this ‘compliance’ crap, and they love to educate (aka brainwash) drivers into thinking a whole world of ■■■■ is going to come down on their lugs if they go over their time 2 mins or something equally as trivial.
On the other hand some drivers succumb to all this and actually believe it. 
Way I see it is if you try and run legal, and on the whole succeed that is adequate, everybody can genuinely ■■■■ up from time to time,.we ain’t robots (well most of us anyway 
)
I seriously could not be arsed to work for the type of firm who try and make you believe that an infringement is a fate worse than death. and would find it quite difficult to take them seriously tbh.
Conor:
Any old timer who is still struggling with EU drivers hours regs a quarter of a century after they came out should have their licence revoked.
And yet a couple of years ago, you yourself insisted at length that it was not legal to have a reduced rest on two consecutive weekends. Should you have your licence revoked?
It’s been a while since I’ve been on here and I seem to have forgotten how to use the forum! This post was supposed to be on another thread.
Never mind, nothing to see here, move along.
robroy:
Way I see it some firms are way over the top with this ‘compliance’ crap, and they love to educate (aka brainwash) drivers into thinking a whole world of [zb] is going to come down on their lugs if they go over their time 2 mins or something equally as trivial.
On the other hand some drivers succumb to all this and actually believe it.Way I see it is if you try and run legal, and on the whole succeed that is adequate, everybody can genuinely [zb] up from time to time,.we ain’t robots (well most of us anyway
I seriously could not be arsed to work for the type of firm who try and make you believe that an infringement is a fate worse than death.
Spot on mate! Cant remember Visa hanging anyone for small infringements, in my experience they just tell you to where you’ve gone wrong on occasion. As long as you’re not kicking the arse out of the job. Visa are only really interested in the ones who are serially offending.
robroy:
Way I see it some firms are way over the top with this ‘compliance’ crap, and they love to educate (aka brainwash) drivers into thinking a whole world of [zb] is going to come down on their lugs if they go over their time 2 mins or something equally as trivial.
On the other hand some drivers succumb to all this and actually believe it.Way I see it is if you try and run legal, and on the whole succeed that is adequate, everybody can genuinely [zb] up from time to time,.we ain’t robots (well most of us anyway
I seriously could not be arsed to work for the type of firm who try and make you believe that an infringement is a fate worse than death.
Spot on mate! Cant remember Visa hanging anyone for small infringements, in my experience they just tell you to where you’ve gone wrong on occasion. As long as you’re not kicking the arse out of the job. Visa are only really interested in the ones who are serially offending.
nogo:
Spot on mate! Cant remember Visa hanging anyone for small infringements, in my experience they just tell you to where you’ve gone wrong on occasion. As long as you’re not kicking the arse out of the job. Visa are only really interested in the ones who are serially offending.
So long as you stay under your credit limit.
Conor:
No idea why so many people find it so hard. Unless you’re double manning, trying to compensate for reduced weeklies etc it ain’t rocket science.Any old timer who is still struggling with EU drivers hours regs a quarter of a century after they came out should have their licence revoked.
Although I kind of agree with you about being able to stay on the right side of the rules, I cant agree with you about revoking licenses. I’ve known drivers well in there seventies with all there experience able to run rings around drivers who are in their 30’s with 10 years under their belt. I myself pushing 40 with 17 years experience have been thought a lesson or two over the years by an “old timer”!
With standards dropping in this industry we need encourage the older drivers to carry on for as long as they see fit or are still safe to do so.
Santa:
nogo:
Spot on mate! Cant remember Visa hanging anyone for small infringements, in my experience they just tell you to where you’ve gone wrong on occasion. As long as you’re not kicking the arse out of the job. Visa are only really interested in the ones who are serially offending.So long as you stay under your credit limit.
I wouldn’t put it quite like that but I’ve been pulled by VOSA before and had a couple of infringements and never had any problems. They simply bought it to my attention asked weather I was aware I’d done it. And told me to keep a closer eye on what I was doing. I would say in the 8 times that I’ve been pulled I’ve never really had a problem with them. Only been fined once and that was for dash tables and if I’m honest he was desperate to do me for something. He’s the exception to the rule.
Wooooosh
Have you read the rulebook? I didn’t have a clue about the regs, until I read it! Read it a few times back to back till most of it sinks in, I personally don’t find the vast majority of it complicated.
I’d say the vast majority of drivers haven’t read it and their knowledge is a cobbled together mash of what they were told by an experienced driver when they started, a TM, a magazine article, what they’ve read on here and Facebook groups and DCPCs all of which might have been right or wrong.
Read it yourself!
gov.uk/guidance/drivers-hou … s-vehicles
Yes there’s leeway, generally fines don’t start till you’re more than 15 mins over a maximum or under a minimum. And that’s only if stopped on that current day, once you’ve had a rest period on an otherwise clean card you’d need to be over 2 hours over or under and you can even have 3 upto 2 hours over / under in the previous 28 days and not get fined
On weight you can be 5% over to a max of 1t before fines start. And from DVSA you’ll only be fined for 1 overloading offence when there’s multiple, ie axles / gross / train
Again, read it all here
gov.uk/guidance/drivers-hou … s-vehicles
There’s no leeway on some stuff though, like moving within a rest period or break.
You should see some of the absolute xollobs they come up with for the Transport Manager’s exam, asking them to schedule several drivers to cover a simply ridiculous series of trunking jobs for a number of weeks, taking advantage of every wheeze in the regulations and running everything to the wire. It’s complete theory with no leeway whatsoever.
Then new broom thinks he’ll give it a try.
Harry Monk:
Conor:
Any old timer who is still struggling with EU drivers hours regs a quarter of a century after they came out should have their licence revoked.And yet a couple of years ago, you yourself insisted at length that it was not legal to have a reduced rest on two consecutive weekends. Should you have your licence revoked?
Given I have posted examples showing how you can do it taken from the government’s own website as they give a nice graphical example of how you can, I’d be surprised if I have.
You do however have to have a full 45hr rest every other week.