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Mar 15, 2011

HOS * UK - Drivers' Hours Law: Understanding the 4.5-hour break rule

London,EN,UK -Road Transport, by Karen Crispe -15 March 2011:  ...  The exact wording can found in the Regulation (EC) 561/ 2006 Article 7, which states "after a driving period of 4.5 hours, a driver shall take an uninterrupted break of not less than 45 minutes, unless he takes a rest period" ...  The 4.5-hour break rule is one of the fundamentals of Drivers' Hours Law, yet surprisingly it is still the one that is regularly breached by drivers, writes Karen Crispe, managing director of Tachodisc...  Despite all the information available, confusion and misunderstanding of the rule remains rife...  The level of enquiries has also increased since the introduction of Graduated Fixed Penalties. Why? Drivers want to avoid a penalty so have a vested interest in becoming knowledgeable about the law as well as the consequences of their employer not complying with the rules, i.e. they will be the one in the front line, and the one who could face the penalty or worse. In turn, this is forcing operators, especially those that may not be fully conversant in all the legislative changes that have occurred over the last five to six years, to be able to clarify the rule when questioned by drivers...  Also, The Act makes it an offence for an operator to use a vehicle on the road when the driver does not comply with the drivers' hours rules.   (Picture from truckertotrucker: Trucker's restart hours)


* UK - Drivers' Hours: don't push the law to the limit


London,EN,UK -Road Transport, by Mike Sherrington -15 March 2011: -- It's no secret that some drivers are put under pressure to sail close to the wind when adhering to their legal hours. At a job interview, a Commercial Motor reader was told: "Although we have to adhere to the law, drivers' hours are really an inconvenience. We expect you to work to the limit of your hours. If you get back into the yard before your hours expire, it really winds us up" ... The driver, who was interviewed by an operator in the North-West, was then told that he was expected to cut his journey time so tightly that he should have only a couple of minutes left out of his allotted hours. He would be paid not by an hourly rate, but a percentage of the amount his vehicle made on the trip. When he looked at the proposed routes he realised it would be impossible to complete journeys without becoming a health and safety risk. He would be forced to speed and suffer stress from the working methods. So he decided not to take the job...  With margins in the industry becoming ever tighter because of rising fuel prices, many firms are trying to squeeze as much out of their drivers as possible...  Putting drivers under such pressure could lead to serious accidents - but what is the legal situation?

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