Tachograph and drivers' hours

Tachographs record information about driving time, drivers' break and rest time, as well as time spent by the driver doing other work. They’re used to make sure drivers and employers follow the rules on drivers’ hours.

Needing a tachograph

In general, goods vehicles with a maximum allowed weight over 3.5 tonnes (including any trailer) and passenger vehicles with more than nine seats (including the driver's) need to be fitted with tachograph recording equipment.

If your vehicle was first registered before 1 May 2006 this can be an analogue tachograph. If your vehicle was registered on or after this date, it will need a digital tachograph.

Digital tachographs allow for easier analysis, monitoring and control of drivers' hours by operators and the enforcement authorities.

Smart tachographs are digital tachographs with additional smart features, such as satellite location data, and remote communications for enforcement officers. There are 2 versions, version 1 and version 2. All vehicles first registered after 30 August 2024 which are used on international journeys must have a smart tachograph version 2 fitted. All vehicles first registered after 20 February 2024 must have a smart tachograph version 2 installed.

The Driver & Vehicle Agency (DVA) checks up to 25,000 tachograph records per year.

New tachographs for international journeys

After 30 December 2024, all vehicles which need a tachograph and which are used on international journeys must have a smart tachograph version 2 vehicle unit fitted. This may mean the existing tachograph needs to be replaced with a new model. Contact an Approved

Rules

There are three sets of rules that could apply to your journey:

retained EU rules
European Agreement about the Work of Crews of Vehicles Engaged in International Road Transport (AETR) rules
NI domestic rules

The rules that will apply depend on a range of factors. Read the following Department for Infrastructure (DfI) guides for more information:

A weekly record sheet template for recording driver’s hours under NI domestic rules is available at:

Drivers’ hours and tachographs – weekly record sheet

Changes to the retained EU drivers’ hours and tachograph rules

The EU drivers’ hours and tachograph rules have changed. Key changes include:

a necessity for drivers’ to ‘return home’ every four weeks
a ban on taking regular weekly rest periods in the drivers’ vehicle
a new definition of non-commercial carriage
more flexibility on the scheduling of the rest periods for some drivers on international carriage of goods
new rules for rests and breaks for drivers when journeys involve transport by ferry or by rail
a new necessity to keep a full record of all other work

If you are an operator or driver, you should review the changes to the current rules and prepare to meet these rules.

More guidance clarifying DVA’s enforcement policy for acceptable records of other work can be found at:

Guidance – recording of other work

Tachograph centres

Tachographs can only be fitted, checked, repaired and calibrated by a tachograph centre approved by the DVA. A list of approved tachograph centres where you can have your tachograph fitted, checked, repaired and calibrated is available below:

Approved tachograph centres

Information on how to become an approved tachograph centre and what is needed for the proper operation of approved tachograph centres can be found at the link below:

Approved tachograph centre manual

For digital tachograph smart card queries contact the DVA digital tachograph section, at the number in the link below:

Driver & Vehicle Agency - driver licensing

For tachograph centre approval queries contact the DVA enforcement section, at the number in the link below:

Driver & Vehicle Agency – enforcement and compliance

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