rightio, I have been working bleedin funny hours this week, and am worried about infringing tacho laws as regards to rest periods and daily rest periods. Today I took a 45 min break as i wasn’t too sure if I needed to or not, but anyway I hope you can help me to see whats what.
So far this week,
Monday,
start driving 11.40, break 14.35 to 15.40, drive 15.40 to 17.55, break 17.55 to 18.40, drive 18.40 to 19.35
Tuesday
start driving 06.40 to 10.25, break 10.25 to 12.15, drive 12.15 to 12.35, break 12.35 to 15.00, drive 15.00 to 18.30, break 18.30 to 18.45, drive 18.45 to 19.15, break 19.15 to 20.00, drive 20.00 to 20.45.
Wednesday
Due to set off at 6am
So Monday nights rest period was 11hrs and 5 mins, and tonight into tomorrow will be 9 and a quarter. Am I right in thinking that I can have one more Daily Rest period of less than 11 hours this week?
Also, today, was I right to take the final 45 minute break ? My thinking was that I drove from 3 to 6.30 (3 and half) then another 30 mins after a 15 minute break and as I knew the drive to the yard from the docks is 45 mins that would have tipped me over the 4 and half hours limit. I hadn’t realised I’d got a 15 minute break in cus that was sat waiting for the toploader crane to come round I put the mode onto rest and it didn’t seem that long lol. Or should I have looked at it that the first period of drving was about 4 hours, with a 15 minute drive to another place, so giving me 15 minutes to use in the afternoon which along with the other 15 minutes means I should have only had a 15 minute rest instead of 45?
You can reduce your 11 hour daily break up to 3 times per week, but you must make the hours up by the end of the following weeks, weekly rest.
which means in your case you must add 1hour 45 minutes to a daily or weekly break before the end of the weekly break on Sunday 25th Jan.
The breaks are only a minimum so is your breaks added upto one hour it doesn’t matter as you have had the required 45 minutes before or the end of your 4.5 hours driving. One thing to remember is that once your have had your 45 minutes break you start a new driving period so is you have you 45 minutes after only 2 hours driving that counts as a driving period.
Its very late but I think… er yes …er no…er maybe.
Seriously though,
You were right to stop for that last break but I reckon you could have stopped for thirty minutes and been ok. You had already taken a fifteen minute break a little earlier.
15.00-18.30= 3.30hrs driving
18.30-18.45 = 15mins break
18.45-19.15= 30mins driving
19.15-20.00= 45 mins break {30mins needed}
20.00-20.45= 45 mins driving
You can have three nine hour rest periods in any one week so yes you can do two more yet
Having said all that I am a bit rusty on the finer points these days my average driving per day comes to between two and four hours in total but I am sure if someone thinks I am wrong they will soon tell me
Really enjoyed reading your posts, keep 'em coming. I’m not sure if you’ve got one yet but I recommend one of those Driver Hour Guards as adverised on this forum. I got one at Christmas and dont know how I managed without it last year. Also if I remember rightly on the VDO site there is a good guide to the tacho regulations - just type in UK Tachograph regulations into Google and see what comes up.
If you ask nicely Davey Driver will give you a discount just mention Trucknet on the order form.
thanks everyone, yes I think that I will get a Hour Guard with my first weeks wages - at the moment I am writing them all down in a diary anyway, but when you’ve been at work for 13 hours or so ones poor brain can’t cope
By the same token, I finished ‘early’ today at 5pm (so did 9 hours today driving exactly!) and am starting tomorrow morning at 4am - jezzus I can’t remember getting up that early before; going to bed yes, getting up no!
to save some confusion… never have duty of more than 13 hours and never take a reduced break then compensating in the coming weeks will be avoided …only drive 45 per week unless you need more to get home at the weekend…bosses dont like it when you tell them you will be in monday lunch…and will probally only be able to work to friday breakfast time
also if you know your on a big drive…at least 9 hours try the 3hr 20 then break routine at least its worth starting the last shift
Another option to (or as well as) the Hour Guard, is a disc checker. Its a plastic disc with 24 hours printed on it (with a 2 minute ring and a 5 min ring). It has a movable clear plastic pointer with a red hair-line printed on that and a boss in the centre. You position your tacho disc over the boss and under the pointer, move the pointer around the checker disc. You use it at the end of you shift, to check on exactly how long you have been driving, on rest etc.
You can buy them at most truck-stops. For a bit of printed plastic, its a trifle expensive. For what it can save you, its cheap.
The hour guard isn’t much more to be honest, and it’s simpler than the little disk gadget for one person.
Besides, the checker points out mistakes after you made them, an hour guard stops you making the mistakes in the first place (assuming you use it right).
Users of Trucknet UK recieve a discount when Buying direct from Capitol Enterprises Ltd, the price being £22.99 inc P&P, ussually the hour guard is dispatched same day, there is one slight problem at present though The New Website does not currently have the facilities to give the discount using the code that was used, however, if you do order an Hour Guard through the website, take the time to also click on “Contact US” and just pop a line that you’ve ordered a timer and require the Trucknet Discount, the sales dept will then recieve the e-mail at the same time as the order and can then reduce the price accordingly for you.
The Plastic Disc Checkers are a good way to find out after the offence has been committed, but to be honest, for the sake of an extra £13.00 the Hour Guard would be more use in preventing the offence like Allikat says.
It’s no good shutting the gate after the Horse has Bolted
I’ve co heard through the grapevine that a Very Large Corporate Truck Company is offering a double figured amount of Hour Guard Timers as prizes in a Truck Magazine promotion in April, obviously I cannot confirm this, well I could but I’ll not but the total amount is 3 below my current age and I’m no spring chick having been born in 1960
just mention Trucknet on the order form.
that a Very Large Corporate Truck Company is offering a double figured amount of Hour Guard Timers as prizes in a Truck Magazine promotion in April, obviously I cannot confirm this, well I could but I’ll not