No tacho chart?
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No excuse!
Anumber of recent decisions in the Divisional Court relate to tachograph records. Some have been hailed as fundamentally changing the criteria for a prosecution for permitting; others merely re-affirm the status quo.
There has been a lot of controversy as to whether drivers, when using the firm's truck to drive home, need to use a tachograph. Some drivers believe that if they use an HGV for private use they do not need to use a tachograph.
Many drivers believe that once they have finished for the day and parked up at the customer's premises they can use the tractor to drive up to the local cafe for a meal or a cup of tea without using a tachograph because they are resting
However, The Divisional Court has made it clear that a driver was guilty of driving a vehicle when a tachograph was not working or being used, even though he was driving home having finished work for the day.
The driver in this case said that he thought it was all right for personal use. The judge's view was that as a driver has an obligation to use a chart from the moment he takes over a vehicle, it follows that the chart must remain until he gives up the use of that vehicle. It seems that there can be no personal use of an HGV unless it is exempt from the regulations.
This judgement is not going to help the one-man operator who uses his 7.5-tonner for business and pleasure.