who keeps there mode at break all the time, even when unloading trailer, i have spoke to alot of people recently who all do this,
i have been trying to do mine correctly using crossed hammers and am finding it difficult… i cant understand why m funding it hard because it seems to be really easy but recently i have been getting a few infringements.
driving me mad.
plus, what would happen if vosa came in and saw i had a few infringements,
would they be strict, im not talking driving for hours and hours, its just silly things…
if you had drove for your 4 and a half hours, and you where ten mins from your destination, would you stop or drive on.
northernirishinlpool:
plus, what would happen if vosa came in and saw i had a few infringements,would they be strict, im not talking driving for hours and hours, its just silly things…
if you had drove for your 4 and a half hours, and you where ten mins from your destination, would you stop or drive on.
First, if you are 10mins away, you can put on the back of your tacho “had to exceed driving hours to get to safe place to park”. You won’t get away with it all the time, but it is there to do if you need it. If VOSA where to see your infringements which as you say are minor, as long as the company is monitoring you and correcting you then they would leave this to the company (as is happening?) to sort out with you. As for the rest of it, practice and experience will help you plan, guess the times of routes and where and when to stop and have your breaks.
the law says you must stop,but as we all know
many bosses get rather stropy when you do
this,accorrding to the law all trips must be
laid out so that the driver does not have to
break the law ,this means also haveing
time planned into the trip for holdups or
problems, you can not break the law
regulary or they can and will take
action when the either catch you
in a radom check,or they do a check
of your firm,and who will pay the fine
or employ you if they either suspend
your licence or take it off you,as these
are things that can and do happen to drivers
who are caught breaking the law,
i have sat nav so i know exactly when i will be at destination, this is why i cant understand why im getting infringemnts,
i got one last week and i had worked six hours with out a break, i was about half an hour over the six hours. i think i have been starting my driving time from when i leave te yard and not as soon as i put in the tacho, this is maybe why im loosing that jalf hour, if you know what i mean.
yes brit pete, i do agree with you, but my argument to your comments and to vosa. is this,
we are all only human, and when i go to work i try my best to keep in the law, it only takes common sense for vosa to look my the tachos and see that i have had breaks, and looking at the rest of my tachos, i usually do work in the law, i dont do it on purpose and i would hope that the law would use common sense and see this. i am only human.
yes II agree with your answer and you find that
not all enforcement officers are bad and that
goes for places outside the UK as well, It is
that constant infringement is one that gets
the most attention,unless you have been
involved in a situation which requires
punishment of a higher level,
northernirishinlpool:
i have sat nav so i know exactly when i will be at destination, this is why i cant understand why im getting infringemnts,i got one last week and i had worked six hours with out a break, i was about half an hour over the six hours. i think i have been starting my driving time from when i leave te yard and not as soon as i put in the tacho, this is maybe why im loosing that jalf hour, if you know what i mean.
Correct me if I’m wrong, but as far as I’m aware those infringments should NOT pick up anything to do with the Working Time Directive. Your statement “… i had worked six hours …” makes me believe somebody is 
Furthermore, with most tachograph recorders these days, the driving mode is switched automatically when you move the truck, so how could you add driving time retrospectively which in your statement “… i think i have been starting my driving time from when i leave te yard and not as soon as i put in the tacho …” you are asking
Mark 
i leave it on cross hammers, the maximim i can work is six hours, say i left the gates of the yard at nine, but i put my tacho in at half eight, if it was on crossed hammers then iw ould have to tak a break at half two, but i must not of had one to 3:00
You’re correct by what you’re saying that as far as the WTD directive is concerned, you would need a break, however you should not get a tacho infringement for that. Tacho infringements should not deal with WTD matters - totally different law/regulation as far as I’m aware.
Mark
just looked at the letter i got, i was 12 minutes over my time,
MY GOD does no one now adays have a bit of common sense,
its like accidents that you hear about invoving lorries, they say in the news, THE DRIVER OF THE LORRY WAS OVER HIS HOURS AND THEREFORE AHD BROKE THE LAW, HE WAS A DANGER TO THE PUBLIC, what the news doesnt state how is much over it, like me 12 mins, possibly could be less… the public then look upon the driver of the lorry as a criminal who should never of been allowed on the road…
if tachos dont deal with WTD then what are they for.
You have broken the law whether you’re one minute or 12 minutes over your driving time before taking the break, unless you put the valid reason for doing so on the back of the tachograph chart. If a driver keeps doing this day in day out they will be asking for trouble and any employer should act upon this. Running over the driving time should be an exception rather than the rule.
In a similar way you’ve broken the law speeding, whether you do 33 MPH or 42 MPH in a 30 MPH restricted zone.
Same difference, with the potential same dangereous consequences.
Mark
where you ever in the police mark… lol
Certainly not 
But having dealt with drivers for the past 20 years or so I certainly do now most of their tricks in the book 
Mark
i know breaking the law, is breaking the law, but at the end of the day people have to give and take a bit.
Well that’s entirely up to you, as long as you don’t hit my familes car whilst you’re asleep at the steering wheel
In all seriousness, I’m not ashamed to admit that I have sacked drivers on the spot for driving a truck whilst being caught under the influence of alcohol. Their feet didn’t touch the ground on the way out of the door. I, once, sacked a driver on the spot whent working out of Morocco whilst he was driving his truck on the ferry back to Algeciras, p!ssed as a ■■■■.
Those laws put in place are there to protect you as a driver and the public in general and any driver working for me breaking these laws on a regular basis would be out of the door. I make no apologies for that.
Mark
interlog:
Well that’s entirely up to you, as long as you don’t hit my familes car whilst you’re asleep at the steering wheelIn all seriousness, I’m not ashamed to admit that I have sacked drivers on the spot for driving a truck whilst being caught under the influence of alcohol. Their feet didn’t touch the ground on the way out of the door. I, once, sacked a driver on the spot whent working out of Morocco whilst he was driving his truck on the ferry back to Algeciras, [zb] as a ■■■■.
Those laws put in place are there to protect you as a driver and the public in general and any driver working for me breaking these laws on a regular basis would be out of the door. I make no apologies for that.
Mark
But there are differences betwen drinking and making a mistake in counting how many hours you have driven.
yeagh mark there is a bloody big difference, ne1 under the influence should be sacked and rightly so,
i am talking about a few minutes over the time, so you are telling me that if i was 12 minutes over my time, and i had a crash it was because oi was over my time, wise up… but that is what you said…
so you are telling me that if i was 12 minutes over my time, and i had a crash it was because oi was over my time, wise up… but that is what you said…
But there are differences betwen drinking and making a mistake in counting how many hours you have driven.
And I don’t think that anybody will say anything if the running over your driving time occasionally happens (provided you put an explanation on the back of the tacho). If it happens once, our companies policy is pretty clear - don’t do it again.
So 12 minutes over your time is OK then? So 13 minutes must be OK as well then? Where does it stop? 15 minutes… 30 minutes… 45 minutes■■?
The law is pretty clear… drive for 4 1/2 hrs and you need a 45 minute break. Anything over that and you have done wrong.
just looked at the letter i got, i was 12 minutes over my time,
MY GOD does no one now adays have a bit of common sense,
its like accidents that you hear about invoving lorries, they say in the news, THE DRIVER OF THE LORRY WAS OVER HIS HOURS AND THEREFORE AHD BROKE THE LAW, HE WAS A DANGER TO THE PUBLIC, what the news doesnt state how is much over it, like me 12 mins, possibly could be less… the public then look upon the driver of the lorry as a criminal who should never of been allowed on the road…
It is comments like the above that infuriate me. If I, as working in the transport office, was knowingly sending drivers out on the road breaking the law and somebody got hurt in the process, I wouldn’t be able to sleep with ease at night.
Mark