How long does your didgi card have to be in prior to setting off to do checks ect?
I was told 10 mins but my transport manager is saying 15 mins …also
for the 6 hour rule regarding a break is it from when exactly your card goes in or after your checks and you start …ie
put card in at 05am need break by 11am but is it 11am or 11.10 if my pre-start check is 10mins
If you start at 1pm, get your keys, stick your card in at 13:05, then 10 minutes you can move at 13:15 having done your walkaround checks.
If you stick your card in at 13:05 and fail to make a manual entry - you’ll need to leave it in for 15 minutes before moving.
DO the manual entries. DO the walkaround checks.
DON’T let any yard palm you off with a “you’re not getting paid until your card is in, and wheels are turning” policy they might have.
greatdane:
How long does your didgi card have to be in prior to setting off to do checks ect?
I was told 10 mins but my transport manager is saying 15 mins
There is no set legal minimum. If you’re in a different truck every day, or someone else uses it if its run 24/7 then you’ll ideally show more time. If you’re the only driver and are away in it all week for example then in my opinion you needn’t show more than a few minutes in the morning.
Any time is at drivers discretion I think. As long as it is not card in and driving instantly I think you’ll be ok at a roadside stop.10 mins is the normal but DHL want 20. Depends on the company usually. A minute less than 20 at DHL gets you pulled in for “additional training”
Take 10 minutes minimum whatever the circumstances, think about the unlikely but possible consequences EG: a major mechanical failure which results in you losing control and killing someone the chances of you detecting such a defect are minimal the case goes to court you have driven off 5 minutes after inserting your card you’re f*****.
Ignore the hero drivers, you cover yourself regardless of the advice of others.
The-Snowman:
Any time is at drivers discretion I think. As long as it is not card in and driving instantly I think you’ll be ok at a roadside stop.10 mins is the normal but DHL want 20. Depends on the company usually. A minute less than 20 at DHL gets you pulled in for “additional training”
Don’t understand how a walk round check can take 20 minutes unless you’ve got a flatbed with some tricky load on, for example. I really don’t.
mike68:
Ignore the hero drivers, you cover yourself regardless of the advice of others.
I agree with that. But lots of times you will find the “heroes” say one thing on forums or at truckstops to other drivers and give it the big 'un but are quite different when it comes to what they actually do.
Plenty of them are only to happy to load the bullets but will never fire the gun themselves.
rob22888:
The-Snowman:
Any time is at drivers discretion I think. As long as it is not card in and driving instantly I think you’ll be ok at a roadside stop.10 mins is the normal but DHL want 20. Depends on the company usually. A minute less than 20 at DHL gets you pulled in for “additional training”Don’t understand how a walk round check can take 20 minutes unless you’ve got a flatbed with some tricky load on, for example. I really don’t.
It doesn’t. Anytime I do a shift there its usalluy 7-8 minutes checks and 10 minutes sitting about waiting on the 20 minute mark.
And you want to know the real kicker? When you park up you then have to wait a FURTHER 20 minutes before removing your card. Its a royal pain in the jugs
I heard it was a grey area and not legal,but another driver was stopped by VOSA and they said because he showed 10 min on the card prior to moving he saved himself a £60 fixed penalty,so I do exactly that now usually 10 to 15 min every morning
The-Snowman:
rob22888:
The-Snowman:
Any time is at drivers discretion I think. As long as it is not card in and driving instantly I think you’ll be ok at a roadside stop.10 mins is the normal but DHL want 20. Depends on the company usually. A minute less than 20 at DHL gets you pulled in for “additional training”Don’t understand how a walk round check can take 20 minutes unless you’ve got a flatbed with some tricky load on, for example. I really don’t.
It doesn’t. Anytime I do a shift there its usalluy 7-8 minutes checks and 10 minutes sitting about waiting on the 20 minute mark.
And you want to know the real kicker? When you park up you then have to wait a FURTHER 20 minutes before removing your card. Its a royal pain in the jugs
What happens if you get into a solo unit? Wait 20 minutes, drive to trailer, another 20 minute check. Surely not.
thanks for all the replys will stick to a minimum of 10 mins …
regarding the breaks for the 6 hour rule if I had 10 mins checks do I have 5h 50 left or still 6 hours if you get my drift!
rob22888:
The-Snowman:
rob22888:
The-Snowman:
Any time is at drivers discretion I think. As long as it is not card in and driving instantly I think you’ll be ok at a roadside stop.10 mins is the normal but DHL want 20. Depends on the company usually. A minute less than 20 at DHL gets you pulled in for “additional training”Don’t understand how a walk round check can take 20 minutes unless you’ve got a flatbed with some tricky load on, for example. I really don’t.
It doesn’t. Anytime I do a shift there its usalluy 7-8 minutes checks and 10 minutes sitting about waiting on the 20 minute mark.
And you want to know the real kicker? When you park up you then have to wait a FURTHER 20 minutes before removing your card. Its a royal pain in the jugsWhat happens if you get into a solo unit? Wait 20 minutes, drive to trailer, another 20 minute check. Surely not.
Not sure of the official DHL guidelines but I drive to trailer,hook up then start the clock for 20 minutes. Never been pulled up for it. Some drivers do 10 and 10
truckman020:
I heard it was a grey area and not legal,but another driver was stopped by VOSA and they said because he showed 10 min on the card prior to moving he saved himself a £60 fixed penalty,so I do exactly that now usually 10 to 15 min every morning
Depends what they mean though. I doubt its a case of “We haven’t issued you a £60 fixed penalty because you’ve shown 10 minutes instead of 8 minutes” but rather a “We haven’t issued you a £60 fixed penalty because you’ve shown 10 minutes instead of driving off with no time showing at all for a check”.
Unless you work for a big jobsworth outfit where you have to falsify your tacho to show a duty status contrary to what you’re actually doing, ie show 20 minutes for a daily check when 12 minutes of that are sat in the drivers seat eating a sandwich then it will depend entirely upon the circumstances and common sense. If you’ve turned up to the yard that morning and being issued with a random truck then you’ll quite possibly spend 20 minutes or so checking the truck and trailer over. If however you’ve woken up in the truck you’ve being driving for the past two years, and keep a constant check on throughout your working days and weeks then 5 minutes or so in the morning will be enough, 10 if you really want to push it to extremes but there’s no reason why a tramper would spend 20-30 minutes every morning.
greatdane:
thanks for all the replys will stick to a minimum of 10 mins …
regarding the breaks for the 6 hour rule if I had 10 mins checks do I have 5h 50 left or still 6 hours if you get my drift!
6 hours from when the card goes in (assuming that you haven’t had to have a break due to accumulated driving before that point). The 10/15/20 min first check is still work, so that’s what sets the clock ticking.
Hope I made that understandable?
the maoster:
greatdane:
thanks for all the replys will stick to a minimum of 10 mins …
regarding the breaks for the 6 hour rule if I had 10 mins checks do I have 5h 50 left or still 6 hours if you get my drift!6 hours from when the card goes in (assuming that you haven’t had to have a break due to accumulated driving before that point). The 10/15/20 min first check is still work, so that’s what sets the clock ticking.
Hope I made that understandable?
thankyou that makes perfect sense to me
Whatever you do DONT put your card in ad just drive …
do your manual entries if your required . then WAIT…
your VDU will show a SQUARE that will then change to what looks to be a door ( it infact represents the drivers card ) only then move the truck as if you don’t wait it interrupts everything and assumes your continuing fro when you took your card out previously.
As for the question There is No definitive answer on the vehicle checks … you may have booked on work at 20:00 walked out to the truck done your checks then put your card in ( just in case you had to change truck due to defects ) there is nothing wrong with this as log as you show a manual entry but it would be better to put your card in 1st .
I often get issued a truck, Do my manual entries, then move the unit to another part of the depot as there is more light to do my Pre use checks and nothing has ever been said about that.
As long as your showing Time to complete vehicle checks that’s all the authority’s are concerned about and as said its not un reasonable to spend 15 - 30 min doing checks …
I think it differs job to job.
I am in my motor all week and its pretty much multi drop work so I am in and out all day, in that I get to walk around the motor god knows how many times so it gets a regular eyeball, At the end of the day I have to do a wagon de breif and check my meter readings and if in the yard do a re-plen, so can show at least 20 mins at the end of the day, I can do a full walk round talk round in 90 seconds.
In the mornings, it has been known at some places to show a couple of minutes, pull further round the yard to the smoke shelter/bog/canteen and do your checks there as you have to check the steering and brakes
Or just use simple common sense, if you get a different motor everyday then give it a good check, if you can keep a diary of the motors youve been in and note defects/marks etc, If the motor is only used by you, if you dont know it inside out within 2 weeks, IMO youve got no hope.
6 Hour rule.
For example you Start at 6am, card in at 6.05, do a manual to put the card starting you at 6am, clock ticks from 6am, time now may be 6.08, do checks, shake your leg and crack on.
I always add that time on via a manual entry. Routnie for me is, get keys from gaffer, start it up, lights and indicators on etc, wait for the computer to finish its checks. Then I start outside so the tyres, curtains, pop the side or back door to check the load, lights and all that. Then I pop the card in and do a manual entry. The card is the last thing I do before I start rolling. Got to wait for the card to be finished being read though.
In yard for 630, but card doesn’t go in till 645. Manual entry for 630 then on “other work” until loaded at which point I’m doing my checks on the wagon and Moffett
As a tramper using the same vehicle I can confirm that whilst speaking to a partime VODVSA officer (drives for ASDA rest of the time) at an RDC at some point in time that it was confirmed that it would be reasonable to expect a few minutes checks at the start and end of every shift and would be nice to see a pattern of longer start and end of weekly shift checks.
That said know exact time was mentioned but 5 - 10 mins would cover it.
Regularly showing virtually instant driving from card insertion would highlight a need for further investigation.
Quite a good common sense approach I thought at the time, almost as if ive just made this up myself.