ibson:
I’m doing my DCPC along with the rest of our company on Saturdays, they don’t have to come along if they don’t want… I actually want to gain mine and I will not be booking it as other work. Vosa can read this very post to see that it’s my option to do it and that’s how I’m going to dispose of my time.We are also required to learn Spanish and deliver pizza on scooters Harry
just put your vehicle registration number down on this forum for vosa, they won’t pull you anyway! It’s other work! ENDEX!
A good company ( like stobarts cough cough ) wouldn’t let you drive into widnes on the morning of the course, or let you drive off after either as it’s classed as other work! But the manager and planner would book you midweek meaning you lose two nights out, have to go home and drive your own car to widnes! Then you lose your meal allowance for the day, because they provide sandwiches from Knutsford moto services ( I mean the boardroom at Appleton, because the directors said there fit for drivers ) and to top it all off they could LEGALLY PAY YOU A SIXTH SHIFT! And they say it’s NOT a scam! I’ve said it before on this forum folks, THEY KNOW NOTHING!
ibson:
I personally think, if your company is not asking you to do it, you just want to, then its not other work, it’s you disposing of your time freely.
How can you say such a thing if you yourself have taken the Operator’s CPC? The whole point of the Operator’s CPC is to train you in road transport law. All you are doing is putting your fingers in your ears and saying “La la la, I can’t hear you”.
I know Harry, I think the reason I’m struggling to let this one go is because It can be easily read the way I’m pointing out.
On my first DCPC course with a particular trainer, he made it clear at the start of the course that it counts as ‘other work’.
A couple of months later when I went on another course with the same trainer, he explained that there had been ‘some discussions’ about this, and that the latest stance was that if the company was sending you on the course then it was still ‘other work’. However, if you were doing it off your own back it wasn’t. We argued the point, and he agreed with us, but he was just passing on information to the best of his knowledge.
No, I don’t know where he got this information from, although I have to say that he seemed to be spot on with the training (even knew it was 15mins/6hrs ).
So without any back-up, I suppose it’s just MDCPCTTM
Just seen other posts saying this, but not wasting all that typing
grumpybum:
On my first DCPC course with a particular trainer, he made it clear at the start of the course that it counts as ‘other work’.
A couple of months later when I went on another course with the same trainer, he explained that there had been ‘some discussions’ about this, and that the latest stance was that if the company was sending you on the course then it was still ‘other work’. However, if you were doing it off your own back it wasn’t. We argued the point, and he agreed with us, but he was just passing on information to the best of his knowledge.
No, I don’t know where he got this information from, although I have to say that he seemed to be spot on with the training (even knew it was 15mins/6hrs ).
So without any back-up, I suppose it’s just MDCPCTTM
Just seen other posts saying this, but not wasting all that typing
grumpybum:
Just seen other posts saying this, but not wasting all that typing
Bingo! That is exactly as I read it and have struggled to explain lol
it’s still other work! Endex! Once you’ve logged off on your digi ( let’s say you’re a Monday to Friday tramper ) and you’re doing it OFF YOUR OWN BACK! you’re not going to tell your employer anyway are you? BUT it’s other work! In the old days say pre digi, we never put cards in on a saturday whilst doing our ADR twenty years ago! I can see your point, but YOU KNOW WHO’S READING THIS, so why give the game away too cheaply■■?
Like me at stobarts, I drive Volvo 460 reg no, pn11 Cco, I’m going on N ADR course next month off my own back, BUT don’t tell anyone as stobarts paid for four modules but I’m asking for 21 hrs to go towards my DCPC! Please vosa pull me at every opportunity, I’ll whistle like a canary!
grumpybum:
On my first DCPC course with a particular trainer, he made it clear at the start of the course that it counts as ‘other work’.
A couple of months later when I went on another course with the same trainer, he explained that there had been ‘some discussions’ about this, and that the latest stance was that if the company was sending you on the course then it was still ‘other work’. However, if you were doing it off your own back it wasn’t. We argued the point, and he agreed with us, but he was just passing on information to the best of his knowledge.
No, I don’t know where he got this information from, although I have to say that he seemed to be spot on with the training (even knew it was 15mins/6hrs ).
So without any back-up, I suppose it’s just MDCPCTTM
Just seen other posts saying this, but not wasting all that typing
Bingo!
Well, if this letter which was posted in a post I started re DCPC, VOSA are saying self funding doesn’t count as other work.
And to make sure if this is gen or not I will be ringing this person in the morning.
Sally Cranney - VOSA wrote:
Corporate Office
2nd Floor
Berkeley House
Croydon Street
BRISTOL
BS5 0DA
Thank you for your email of 7 December addressed to the Department for Transport. It has been passed to me to respond as the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) is responsible for enforcing drivers’ hours legislation. I am sorry for the delay in responding to your correspondence.
The drivers’ hours legislation states that a weekly rest period is a period during which drivers may freely dispose of their time. It is therefore the compulsory or voluntary
nature of CPC training which determines whether or not it should be counted as working time.
Driver CPC training should be treated as working time if the driver is instructed to attend the training as part of their employment. If, however, a driver organises their own training and attends that training during their rest period or day off, then it is counted as rest like any other voluntary activity.
If an employer organises non-compulsory training for drivers which takes place at weekends and where attendance is unpaid, it does not count as working time.
I trust you find this information helpful.
Yours sincerely,
Sally Cranney
An executive agency of the Department for Transport
weeto:
From: Sally CranneyDriver CPC training should be treated as working time if the driver is instructed to attend the training as part of their employment. If, however, a driver organises their own training and attends that training during their rest period or day off, then it is counted as rest like any other voluntary activity.An executive agency of the Department for Transport
SHE’S contradicted herself though! It’s all other work, as it’s TRAINING AS PART OF THEIR EMPLOYMENT! Endex!
weeto:
From: Sally CranneyDriver CPC training should be treated as working time if the driver is instructed to attend the training as part of their employment. If, however, a driver organises their own training and attends that training during their rest period or day off, then it is counted as rest like any other voluntary activity.An executive agency of the Department for Transport
SHE’S contradicted herself though! It’s all other work, as it’s TRAINING AS PART OF THEIR EMPLOYMENT! Endex!
That means instructed from were you work, as in your employer instructs you to do it, god you lot are unbelievable.
I will say alot of the guys on here are very knowledgable, but regulations regarding this keep being posted, which dont even apply to a driver on a weekly rest period, and which wouldn’t even stand up in a court of law, FFS.
degsy4wheels:
This may have been brought up before, but if not then your views would be of interest. On a recent routine pull by VOSA, they asked if i had done my DCPC, i said not yet, but the firm were looking at doing it on a Saturday. VOSA said,“be careful doing that, it counts as your weekly working hours, and you still need the required weekly rest”.
Not heard that before.
It has been asked before and this is the answer I got from the DFT.
degsy4wheels:
This may have been brought up before, but if not then your views would be of interest. On a recent routine pull by VOSA, they asked if i had done my DCPC, i said not yet, but the firm were looking at doing it on a Saturday. VOSA said,“be careful doing that, it counts as your weekly working hours, and you still need the required weekly rest”.
Not heard that before.
It has been asked before and this is the answer I got from the DFT.
So Wheel Nut, is you interpratation of that, the same as Fatboy slimslow?
This really needs to be sorted before it ends in another 3 page post like the last time it was brought up.
Harry Monk:
Yes, because you aren’t free to dispose of your time as you wish. You can’t argue that it is your wish to take DCPC training, because VOSA will know you’re lying as no-one is that much of a gonk
Wheel Nut:
It has been asked before and this is the answer I got from the DFT.
You could drive a coach and horses through that. I thought the pertinent points where…
Driver CPC should be treated as working time if the driver is instructed…
And thought this was laughable…
If an employer organises non compulsory…it does not count as working time.
DfT and VOSA make it up as they go along.
Work is work or it isn’t. As far as i know ‘instructed’ or ‘compulsory’ (or not) where never qualifiers, its demonstrated by the activity itself. Truth is, if it doesn’t fit that FPN criteria they are pretty much ■■■■■■ up by such questions.
limeyphil:
if, and that’s a [zb]ing big IF i do the dcpc, then i will be free to dispose of my time.
i will be fast asleep. and if they think it’s other work, then the jury can decide.
don’t crack philip, stick to your guns, you must be strong
Well it seems like this: If you are getting paid to attend OR your employer is paying the course fee, its other work. If YOU are paying for it yourself, it isn’t.
Driveroneuk:
Well it seems like this: If you are getting paid to attend OR your employer is paying the course fee, its other work. If YOU are paying for it yourself, it isn’t.
grumpybum:
Just seen other posts saying this, but not wasting all that typing
Bingo! That is exactly as I read it and have struggled to explain lol
it’s still other work! Endex! Once you’ve logged off on your digi ( let’s say you’re a Monday to Friday tramper ) and you’re doing it OFF YOUR OWN BACK! you’re not going to tell your employer anyway are you? BUT it’s other work! In the old days say pre digi, we never put cards in on a saturday whilst doing our ADR twenty years ago! I can see your point, but YOU KNOW WHO’S READING THIS, so why give the game away too cheaply■■?
Like me at stobarts, I drive Volvo 460 reg no, pn11 Cco, I’m going on N ADR course next month off my own back, BUT don’t tell anyone as stobarts paid for four modules but I’m asking for 21 hrs to go towards my DCPC! Please vosa pull me at every opportunity, I’ll whistle like a canary!
Some of us are still per digi lol
Look this doesn’t really affect our company, my guys can book it as other work just to be safe, I already have mine so it doesn’t affect me either.
I’m only really playing devils advocate. If I have time I will pop into vosa Newport today to try and get an answer direct.
The posts from Weeto and Wheel Nut with the email/letter from VOSA both have the same wording concerning the difference between being sent by an employer and doing it off your own bat, so it’s fair to assume that this is taken from their own guidelines and seems definitive enough for me.
Driveroneuk:
Well it seems like this: If you are getting paid to attend OR your employer is paying the course fee, its other work. If YOU are paying for it yourself, it isn’t.
so if thats the case can i book 3.5 hrs other work and the rest of the 3.5 hours as break,(as the boss is paying half) but then again which 3.5 hrs is the company paying for■■? if its the second lot will need more weekly rest?
but there again could use it as a split break nor not as the case might be.
now our courses are arrangend by another company, we are told where they are and at what time, then it is up to us if we go or not, we are not told we have to, it won’t effect our employment until sept 2014
as i was told at my last one when the question was asked “who is responsible for the dcpc” answer “the driver!! not the employer”
degsy4wheels:
This may have been brought up before, but if not then your views would be of interest. On a recent routine pull by VOSA, they asked if i had done my DCPC, i said not yet, but the firm were looking at doing it on a Saturday. VOSA said,“be careful doing that, it counts as your weekly working hours, and you still need the required weekly rest”.
Not heard that before.
It has been asked before and this is the answer I got from the DFT.
This is the advice that my DCPC Trainer and my boss got from the RHA.
Personally, I didn’t buy it because it just sounded too handy from an employers point of view. So I made sure that I still fitted in with the Regulations.
My DCPC Trainer is an old transport man who understands our Industry. He made sure that the course started and finished early enough on Saturday so that we had a chance of full Weekly Rest.
Mind you, I could of joined ESL and get it all laid on for free (and still winge about night out and dinner money) Haha
I’ve said it before on this forum folks, THEY KNOW NOTHING! 
).
