been for an interview today, one of the reasons i left my first job was cos i was being pressured into putting the tacho on break whilst loading, now cos I paid for my own training ect i did not want to risk being caught. so this and other reasons I left to start another job.
during the interview this came up and the T/M said he could not see anything wrong in me being asked to do the above, which means to me I would be expected to do the same again,
I could understand if the loading was being done by a third party ect and you took your break then, but in my case I was handballing the load, which meant i could not rest as such, on top of this I was driving a distance and at times only just made it back.
am i being naive or would I be risking being caught/fined if i did to the above?
Do not let any transport manager pressurise you in to doing this!!!
You DO risk being caught and fined if you do this! And it’s you who will be punished - not some moron in a shirt and tie!!
If you fall asleep at the wheel due to not taking PROPER breaks - injuring or killing others in the process - that same manager will have you sacked! And that will just be the start of your problems!
Drivers who do this - particularly during their 45 - are sending this job downhill rapidly!
It’s common practice - and you would be surprised the amount of big haulage companies who actively bully their drivers in to doing it.
Look after yourself, your precious licence, and your own welfare!
been for an interview today, one of the reasons i left my first job was cos i was being pressured into putting the tacho on break whilst loading, now cos I paid for my own training ect i did not want to risk being caught. so this and other reasons I left to start another job.
during the interview this came up and the T/M said he could not see anything wrong in me being asked to do the above, which means to me I would be expected to do the same again,
I could understand if the loading was being done by a third party ect and you took your break then, but in my case I was handballing the load, which meant i could not rest as such, on top of this I was driving a distance and at times only just made it back.
am i being naive or would I be risking being caught/fined if i did to the above?
As you already know it’s illegal to put the tachograph on break whilst loading or unloading, it’s also illegal for an employer or TM to encourage you to do so.
It’s really up to you to decide weather or not you wish to bend the rules and regulations to suit yourself as long as you’re aware that to do so could have consequences to be faced if you get caught, If you put the tacho on break every time you stop to load or unload I would say it would look quite suspicious but to be honest the chances of being caught out if you do that on the odd occasion are reasonably small, at the end of the day it’s your call but you certainly shouldn’t be going without your proper breaks regardless of what mode you put the tacho on at other times.
For clarification were you being asked to go without your proper breaks ?
Or was it being suggested that to also put the tacho on break whilst working would reduce your working time shown on the chart/card therefore allowing you to work longer hours and still seemingly comply with the drivers and WTD regulations ?
i thought I was correct, but after today with this T/M and assistant clearly stating that they could not see anything wrong with this I started to think I maybe wrong, so thanks for the advise.
basically in my original job I was being asked to a destination that may be 4-5 hours driving, then to load and then drive back, on requesting night out ect this was when i was told to put the tacho on break whilst loading. as i said I could not see a problem if it was a 3rd party loading the vehicle but in this case it was done by myself handballing and according to where you could be doing this for 2-3 hours, hence a working day could be 8-10 hours driving plus 2-3 hours loading work ,
i was also told by other drivers that this is what they do, as well as driving over the hours ie 5-6 hours before taking a break.
dle1uk:
basically in my original job I was being asked to a destination that may be 4-5 hours driving, then to load and then drive back, on requesting night out ect this was when i was told to put the tacho on break whilst loading. as i said I could not see a problem if it was a 3rd party loading the vehicle but in this case it was done by myself handballing and according to where you could be doing this for 2-3 hours, hence a working day could be 8-10 hours driving plus 2-3 hours loading work ,
i was also told by other drivers that this is what they do, as well as driving over the hours ie 5-6 hours before taking a break.
You would be able to do that legally without a night out as long as you take the proper breaks.
Even with 10 hours driving and 3 hours loading you would simply need to have 2 x 45 minute breaks or the equivalent in split breaks, that still only accumulates to 14.5 hours in total so no more than twice a week would be fine, and on days when you did 9 hours or less driving there should be no problem at all, frankly if drivers are doing this without breaks they must be complete mugs not to mention quite dangerous on the roads, and if the employers are encouraging them they must be even more stupid than the drivers, if they need the loads back at base for a particular time they should reschedule the runs and if they don’t need the loads back for a particular time then there’s no point in running bent anyway.
To be honest I would have just insisted on having the proper breaks, but your probably better off away from a firm like that anyway
