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Driving under GB and EU Drivers Rules Drivers' hours rules: the basics Introduction If you drive a lorry, van, bus or a coach, it is likely that you will need to follow rules on the number of hours you can drive in a day, week or other period. These rules also cover the breaks you will need to take from driving, and daily and weekly rest periods. Research has shown that up to one in six of all serious crashes are caused by drivers falling asleep at the wheel. The aim of the drivers' hours rules is to help you drive safely, and to reduce the risk of injuring yourself and other road users. This guide is aimed at drivers of goods vehicles and passenger-carrying vehicles travelling within the UK and abroad. It explains the different drivers' hours rules that may affect you, depending on what type of vehicle you are driving, what you are using it for, and where you are travelling. GB domestic rules on drivers' hours The GB domestic drivers' hours rules are set out in the Transport Act 1968. They apply to most passenger-carrying vehicles and goods vehicles that do not have to follow the European Union (EU) rules. Separate rules apply in Northern Ireland. There are two key requirements for drivers to meet GB domestic rules: • Daily driving limit - a driver must not drive for more than ten hours in a day. The daily driving limit applies to time spent at the wheel actually driving on a public road. Off-road driving counts as duty time. • Daily duty limit - a driver must not be on duty for more that 11 hours on any working day. A driver is exempt from the daily duty limit on any working day when they do not drive. The rules do not apply to drivers who always drive off the public road, eg driving as part of work in road improvements or road maintenance, quarrying, construction work and civil engineering works. In addition, a driver who drives for fewer than four hours in any day in any fixed week does not have to meet the drivers' hours requirement during that week. A fixed week is from 24.00 on Sunday to 24.00 on the next Sunday. For more information on following GB rules, see our guide on GB drivers' hours rules. Driving under more than one set of drivers' hours rules As a driver, you might spend some of your time driving under one set of rules and some under another set. This can happen during a week, or even on the same day. For example, you might drive a minibus under GB domestic rules in the morning, and then a bus or coach under European Union (EU) rules in the afternoon. If you work partly under EU or European Agreement concerning the work of Crews of Vehicles Engaged in International Road Transport (AETR) rules and partly under GB rules during a day or week, you will need to bear in mind: • the time you spend driving or on duty under EU or AETR rules cannot count as a break or rest period under GB domestic rules • driving and other duty under GB domestic rules - including non-driving work in another employment - count as 'other work' but not as a break or rest period under EU or AETR rules • driving and other duty under EU or AETR rules count towards the driving and duty limits under GB domestic rules " when you drive under ea ch set of rules, you must follow the requirements of the rules they are driving under, eg the daily rest provisions for domestic and the daily and weekly rest requirements for EU or AETR driving To find out more about driving under mixed rules, including driving and duty limits, rest periods and breaks, and record-keeping requirements, see our guide: drive under mixed drivers' hours rules. Drivers' hours rules: the basics How working time regulations affect you as a driver under EU drivers' hours rules As well as the rules on drivers' hours, you may also be affected by regulations on working time. This page looks at what you need to know if you are working under European Union (EU) drivers' hours rules. For information about working time regulations that apply if you are working under GB drivers' hours rules, see our guide on how working time regulations affect you as a driver under GB drivers' hours rules or as an occasional mobile worker. Driving under EU drivers' hours rules Your weekly working time must not exceed an average of 48 hours per week over the reference period. A maximum working time of 60 hours can be performed in any working week providing the average 48-hour limit is not exceeded. The reference period for calculating the 48-hour week is normally 17 weeks, but it can be extended to 26 weeks, provided this is allowed under a collective or workforce agreement. There is no 'opt out' if you want to work longer than an average 48-hour week, but breaks and periods of availability (POAs) do not count as working time. In general, a POA is 'waiting time', the length of which you will know about in advance. Examples of what might count as a POA include accompanying a vehicle on a ferry crossing, and waiting while other workers load or unload your vehicle. If you are a mobile worker driving in a team, a POA would also include time you spend sitting next to the driver while the vehicle is moving, provided you are not taking a break or carrying out other work, such navigating. If you do night work, your working time must not exceed ten hours in any 24-hour period. Night time is defined as the period between: • 00:00 and 04:00 for goods vehicles • 01:00 and 05:00 for passenger-carrying vehicles However, the ten hour limit can be exceeded if a collective or workforce agreement allows this. The rules on breaks are: • Mobile workers must not work more than six consecutive hours without taking a break • If your working hours add up to between six and nine hours, working time should be interrupted by a break or breaks totalling at least 30 minutes • Breaks should be at least 15 minutes The working time regulations on daily and weekly rest are the same as those under EU or AETR drivers' hours rules. Fore more information, see our guides on EU drivers' hours rules and AETR drivers' hours rules. You will need to keep records of your working hours for two years after the reference period. Other working time regulations that affect you As well as the rules described above - which were introduced by the Road Transport (Working Time) Regulations 2005 - you also have additional rights under the Working Time Regulations 1998. These are: • An entitlement to 4.8 weeks' paid annual leave - this will increase to 5.6 weeks from 1 April 2009 • Health checks, if you are a night worker Exemptions for self-employed drivers and occasional mobile workers If you only occasionally drive vehicles under EU drivers' hours rules, you may be able to take advantage of the exemption from the 2005 Regulations for occasional mobile workers. To qualify for this, you must: • Work 10 days or less under EU drivers' hours rules in a reference period that is shorter than 26 weeks • Work 15 days or less under EU drivers' hours rules in a reference period that is 26 weeks or longer If you qualify for this exemption, you will still be affected by the 1998 Regulations on working time. The 2005 Regulations do not currently apply to self-employed drivers. These are defined as anyone who: • transports goods or passengers by road for hire and reward as their main occupation • holds a European Community licence or any other professional authorisation to carry out such transport • is entitled to work for himself and who is not tied to an employer by an employment contract or by any other type of working hierarchical relationship • is free to organise the relevant working activities • depends directly on the profits made through these working activities for their income • is free - either individually or through a co-operation between self-employed drivers - to have commercial relations with several customers How working time regulations affect you as a driver under GB drivers' hours rules or as an occasional mobile worker As well as the rules on drivers' hours, you may also be affected by regulations on working time. This page looks at how working time regulations affect you if: • you work under GB drivers' hours rules • you work under European Union (EU) drivers' hours rules but are exempt from the Working Time Regulations 2005 because you fit the criteria of an occasional mobile worker - to find out if you qualify, see the page in this guide on how working time regulations affect you as a driver under EU drivers' hours rules For information about working time rules that apply if you are working under EU drivers' hours rules, see the page in this guide on how working time regulations affect you as a driver under EU drivers' hours rules. Which parts of the working time regulations affect you If you drive a vehicle under the GB domestic drivers' hours rules, or are an occasional mobile worker, you are affected by four provisions under the Working Time Regulations 1998. These are: • Weekly working time, which must not exceed an average of 48 hours per week over the reference period - although you can opt out of this • A right to 4.8 weeks' paid annual leave - this will increase to 5.6 weeks from 1 April 2009 • Health checks, if you work at night • An entitlement to adequate rest The reference period for calculating the 48-hour average week is normally a rolling 17-week period. This can be extended to 52 weeks, if a collective or workforce agreement allows it. Adequate rest means that you, as a worker, should have regular rest periods. These should be long enough and continuous so that you do not harm yourself, fellow workers or others, and your health is not damaged in the short term or the long term. Exemptions for self-employed workers The working time rules do not apply to you if you are running your own business and are free to work for different clients and customers. Drivers' hours rules: the basics How drivers' hours rules are enforced By law, enforcement officers from the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) have: • the power to inspect vehicles • the power to prohibit and direct vehicles • powers enabling them to look into possible breaches of the law • the power to launch, carry out and appear in cases at a magistrates' court Sanctions The law outlines what happens when people break laws on drivers' hours and tachograph rules, and includes: • Verbal warnings - minor infringements that appear to enforcement staff to have been either accidental or due to the inexperience of the driver or operator and which are one-off cases. A verbal warning includes a clarification of the infringement and an explanation of what might happen if it continues. • An offence rectification notice - operators may get this for several infringements that are not related to safety. You then have 21 days to deal with this, otherwise you may be prosecuted. • Prohibition - for many drivers' hours and tachograph rules infringements, you will get a prohibition. A prohibition is not strictly a 'sanction', more of a tool to remove an immediate threat to road safety. If you receive a prohibition, you may also be given a fixed penalty notice or a Conditional Offer, or you may be prosecuted. • Fixed penalties - for most offences, you will be given a fixed penalty notice in England and Wales, or a Conditional Offer in Scotland. These apply to UK and non-UK drivers. Penalties for drivers' hours and weighing offences are on a scale according on the severity of the offence. • Prosecution - if it's considered to be in the public interest, more serious infringements may lead to prosecution. The driver, the operator or other associated parties, or all parties may be prosecuted. • Referral to the Traffic Commissioner - enforcement staff may report infringements by either a driver who holds a vocational licence and/or an operator who holds an operator's licence to the Traffic Commissioner. This may be instead of or as well as prosecution. For more information about how infringements of the rules are treated, see our guides on EU drivers' hours rules and GB drivers' hours rules. |
