Are Your Log Sheets True?
Page 57
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A Reminder of the Legal Provisions Concerning the Keeping of Drivers' Records, and the Importance of Strict Adherence to the Regulations
M. UCH greater attention is being given to the cbecking of drivers' log sheets. Already several companies have had their licences suspended, whilst many others have been -heavily fined for breaking the relevant regulations. One of the conditions attached to the grant of an A, B or C licence is that the provisions relating to the keeping of records are complied with.
Failure to adhere to the conditions renders the liccnce-holder liable to penalties in the courts of a fine not exceeding £20 for a first offence and £50 for a second and subsequent offences'.
Leaving aside wilful contraventions of the regulations, for which no one has any sympathy, a great deal of apathy and ignorance exists on the part of drivers and managements in the completion and .checking of records, which result in offences that need not occur. It is the duty of a .driver at all times when driving, or engaged upon other work connected with a vehicle, such as loading or unloading, to .carry an Up-to-the-minute record of his hours of work together with the other information required.
When a driver receives a log sheet, he should note that the name of the company, identification number of the carrier's licence, and the index mark and registration number of the vehicle—or vehicles if more than one is driven in the course of the day—are entered in the appropriate spaces. It is not sufficient for the hours of work to be entered on the completion of each day's work. In so doing several contraventions have been created. When commencing work each morning it is important that the date and time the driver last ceased work, normally the previous evening, and the date and time he commenced work he entered in the log sheet.
Returned Within Week Similarly, the meal breaks should be entered when they are taken. Drivers and their employers have been fined for exceeding the 51-hour period through omitting to enter the meal break, when, in fact, it had been observed. Space is provided on a log sheet for the journeys undertaken by the driver and it should be completed in detail. A description of the goods and maximum weight carried is also necessary. After completion of the log sheet it must be signed by the driver concerned and -.returned to the licence-holder or his
representative within seven days.
The licence-holder is under an obligation to see that each of his drivers is provided with the appropriate forms and that they are handed back to him at the end of the period. The forms do not require to follow any prescribed pattern so long as space is provided for all the relevant•inforrnation. The licence-holder should check that all details are properly and fully filled in and that there are no contraventions of the hours If there are, they should be underlined in red and the driver notifiedthat further incidents will not be tolerated. It is also an obligation on the part of a licence-holder not to set his drivers any task which cannot be carried out within the permitted working hours. It is a serious offence for a licence-holder or driver to alter or falsify log sheets in any way.
By far the most common indictable error on log
sheets is that relating to the 5.1-hour period, ..Sinee the regulation became law, mid-morning .and mid-afternoon tea-break has become a custom, and rare indeed is the driver who does not have one or both. Yet because
the tea-break does not extend to hour it is not officially recognized.
For example, a 7 a.m. start with a ..1; hour .tea-break at 10 a.m and the main meal at 1 .pf.m. whilst breaking . the letter of the regulations is not breaking the spirit of them. Second thoughts could provide: a welcome amendment here, removing much, friction between licence-holders and drivers and do away. With about half the indictable offenms on log sheets.
Times of Meal Breaks A driver working from 8 a.m. to 7.30 p.m. must take his meal break at precisely 1.30 p.m. to 2 p.m., otherwise an offence has been committed for which the employer is held responsible. Similarly, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. requires a break of 1 hour from 1.30 p.m. to 2.30 p.m. to comply with the law. It is, of course, permissible to take • two breaks of a minimum of hour each, provided no working period exceeds5. hours.
An irritating sequence can arise on the weekly halfholiday with a work period of say 7.30 a.m. to 1.30 p.m. It seems ridiculous to have an enforced break at 1 p.m. and finish at 2 p.m. but there is no alternative in law.
Many are trapped during the busy season by the minimum 10-hour rest period. A driver ceasing work at 9.30 p.m. cannot commence before 7.30 a.m. the following morning. It is true that the 10-hour period can be reduced to 9 hours provided that a minimum break of 12 hours is given on the following night.
The maximum overall working period in any one day is 11 hours. The only possible exception is mechanical breakdown or accident on the road, where a driver must stand by his vehicle until it is moved or until relieved. Any such incidents shouldbe noted on the log sheet with the hours involved. .Production of proof will be required on any inspection of the log sheet-' Whilst a log sheet is primarily a record of an individual driver's hours much more Can be read out of it. That is one of the reasons why the traffic officers rightly insist that the forms be completed.in detail. The index mark and registered number are necessary to see that the vehicle, or vehicles, are covered by the appropriate licence. Some B licences are restricted in. mileage and the log sheet should show if they were used within the permitted radius. Similarly, some B• licences are restricted to the carrying of certaintraffics .and a description of the goods carried is necessary. It is also important to see that the journey, times bear relation
to the mileages involved. cl 9