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Card sharp
Page 32
Page 33
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Digital tachographs are proving a mixed blessing for drivers. They may simplify record keeping, but they have some annoying quirks as well. We explain how to use them.
Words: Guy Sheppard
What do drivers need to have in order to use digital tachograph equipment correctly? Drivers must have their own personalised smart card before they use a vehicle equipped with a digital tacho. The L38 cost may be contentious because some firms refuse to pay. They argue the card belongs to the driver who may end up working for someone else. Alternatively, driving the vehicle without a card is illegal, it is an essential tool for the job, and so the employer should pay for it.
Training
The amount of training each person needs varies, says Mike Skerrett of driver agency Manpower Driving. -There's a simulator for drivers and they learn at their own pace. Some drivers with DVD players at home and high-spec mobile phones will get through the course in about an hour. Others will struggle, and it could take up to half a day." United Road Transport Union (URTU) regional officer Tony Southam says he has seen examples of companies failing to give drivers the necessary training. At one place, not one of more than 40 drivers knew how to change their tacho when the clocks went forward.
Replacements
The cost of replacing lost or stolen smart cards is £19. A driver may continue to drive without a card for 15 days, provided he produces print-outs from the vehicle unit (VU) showing the start and finish of each journey and details about the type of work undertaken. Drivers must report lost, stolen or faulty cards to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) in seven calendar days. Drivers who fail to replace their card in 15 days can face a penalty of up to £2.500.
What are drivers' responsibilities for ensuring tachograph information is downloaded?
The drivers' smart card holds around 28 days worth of data, and if this is exceeded, the oldest data is overwritten. The Freight Transport Association (FTA) advises that data should be downloaded after a maximum of 21 days, but there are strong arguments for doing this earlier.
Cambridgeshire-based Welch's Transport, scans its drivers' cards every Friday. -That way we can spot infringements quickly," says key account manager Andy Goldsmith. "If you're waiting four weeks to find them, it loses its importance."
Records
Drivers should make their cards available for downloading by their employer, who holds the responsibility for storing the data. Drivers also need sufficient paper in their cab to provide a print-out from the VU if they are requested to by enforcement officers during a roadside check.
If drivers switch between digitaland analogue-equipped vehicles, what should they do?
If a driver uses vehicles with both analogue and digital tachos in the same day, work on the analogue-equipped vehicle must be recorded on an analogue chart. and work on the digitally equipped vehicle using the smart card. The two records then need to be combined by the employer. Manpower's Skerrett says: -Combination driving is something you have to monitor in order to ensure drivers are aware of where they are with records." What exactly should the equipment be used to record? Drivers must ensure the mode button on the VU is set to match their activities, including periods of availability, daily or weekly rest periods, and any work for the same or another employer, even if it doesn't involve transport. Drivers should not remove their smart card from the VU during the working day. Exceptions to this rule include when they have to change vehicle, or where another driver uses the vehicle during a break or rest period.
Manual entries
After a rest period, the VU will prompt the driver to give details of missing periods of time since the card was last removed. These are entered manually by following instructions on the screen. Any gap in activity during a shift is treated as an incomplete record and is illegal. If drivers make a mistake with the mode button, they should make a print-out for the relevant period and note the error, as well as the reason and the time it was made. What protection is there if the equipment is inaccurate? Vosa says drivers should "take reasonable steps" to protect their card from dirt and damage. and they must ensure the tachograph is working properly Nigel Kirkwood, technical director of Tachograph Analysis Consultants, says this doesn't mean the driver needs expert knowledge about how the equipment works. "But if you put a card in and it spits it back out, it's not working, so the driver should report it as faulty so it can be fixed."
Inaccuracies
Although there is no legal requirement for drivers to check their tacho for faults, Kirkwood says it is up to the driver to report any obvious inaccuracies. If a fault becomes apparent while driving, the driver should complete a written record of the work done and when. "You could build a picture retrospectively to prove the tacho record was wrong by using things such as affidavits from the security man and fuel bills,says Kirkwood. What are the main headaches caused by digital tachos? By pressing buttons on the VU, drivers can easily keep track of their driving and break times, but the equipment has several downsides as well. Neil Hayes, a Sheffieldbased driver working for Dodd's Group, says every fortnight he is regularly recorded as doing four hours more driving than he has actually done. This is because the instrument doesn't break down time into periods of less than a minute, and always rounds each minute up rather than down. -What's infuriating is that by the end of the second week, you're struggling to get back home (in the permitted driving time). I've had to get someone else to bring the vehicle home twice."
Inhuman
Pat Nicholson, spokesperson for the Professional Drivers Association, describes digital tachos as inhuman because of their inflexibility. "If you were on a break and had had 44 minutes, you'd have to start the break over again if you needed to move your truck out of the way for someone."
Hayes agrees. saying drivers taking rest periods are often caught out when they return to their cabs after a meal or a shower. -If it's warm, they turn the ignition on to open the widow and when they turn it off, the tacho starts recording them as doing other work." • " Next month's 'Drivers Need to Know' will focus on periods of availability. It will be published on 5 June.