Operators! Newsflash: your roller brake tests are not worth the paper they are written on. What does your brake testing schedule look like? Maybe you have four brake tests undertaken each year, or perhaps you do a brake test every other safety inspection? If so, you are not alone; in fact, the majority of maintenance...Read More

Since April, rumours about the OCRS have abounded. Many operators have questioned the validity of the scoring system in the culture of Earned Recognition; others have suggested the OCRS will be made void upon the implementation of the new enforcement scheme.   These, however, are misconceptions. The bottom line is: there are no plans to...Read More

The Traffic Commissioner has issued a reminder to operators regarding their drivers’ hours responsibilities.   In the run-up to Earned Recognition, the TC’s office brought drivers’ hours responsibilities to the attention of ‘O’ Licence holders in the UK.   As confusion around the new fixed penalty rules peaked, the TC’s office published guidance on legal...Read More

Following a rise in the reported number of objects falling from vehicles, Highways England has issued a notice to motorists: secure your load.   In an effort to help curb the surge in incidents involving insecure loads, the agency has launched a campaign encouraging drivers to take steps to ensure loads are correctly secured.  ...Read More

The DVSA’s made changes to the Guide to Maintaining Roadworthiness.   By doing so, the agency hopes that it has made some of the more complex areas of the guide clearer to operators.   The changes, as published in the Moving On blog, involve the following sections.       The Inspection Safety Graph Because...Read More

The Freight Transport Association (FTA) has issued a warning that time is running out to get a workable plan in place in the wake of Brexit negotiations.   While the FTA, along with other trade bodies, has welcomed the news that provisional terms have been laid out, the association insists that there’s a great deal of...Read More

Recent reports have indicated that within a year, most hauliers will have to pay an additional 20% toward the HGV Road User Levy.   The announcement, made last week by Transport Minister Jesse Norman, details the planned hike. It will target over half of all UK-registered pre-Euro VI trucks.   Taken in context, 56% of...Read More

The DVSA has published a blog setting out a plan to make the process of applying for an operator licence entirely digital.     The blog, guest-written by the Traffic Commissioners, outlines the move as part of a greater scheme to shift all user-government transactions onto a digital platform.     This shift-over will transform...Read More

For the third year running, FORS has confirmed there will be no change to its pricing for subscription and audits.   The move’s expected to boost the appeal of the scheme to smaller operators. By building on the momentum of the decision to scrap Gold evidencing fees, FORS is proving its value to operators of...Read More

Alarming figures were published in a recent study into the state of driver training in the UK.     It’s been revealed that a shocking 76% of HGV drivers have not completed 35 hours of Driver CPC in the run-up to the 2019 deadline.   The research also disclosed that nearly half (49%) of lorry...Read More

Eight months have passed since the introduction of the so-called apprenticeship levy.   Many businesses, however, are still unsure as to what it involves, and how it might affect them.   Currently, only firms with payrolls upward of £3m have access to the funding pot into which they are paying. This, of course, has excluded...Read More

A downturn in lorry registrations has caused trade bodies and associations to question the health of the road haulage industry.   In a report published by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), figures revealed a striking decline in new HGV registrations for 2017. In total, the market dropped by 2.6% across the whole...Read More

Atop a list of all vehicles checked recently by the DVSA for fraudulent emission devices, UK-registered lorries reign supreme.   In the four-month period between August and November last year, DVSA also discovered that 1 in 12 of all vehicles, UK-based or otherwise, were fitted with emission cheat devices.   Of the 3,735 vehicles stopped,...Read More

The state of physical health among small freight firm owners in the UK requires urgent redress, according to recent figures.   One of the most troubling statistics concerned owners of small transport firms. 40% of said owners admitted to having a health scare since starting their business.   The research was conducted on behalf of...Read More

It’s the first week back from the Christmas break. So we’ll kick off 2018 with something a little off-kilter.   It’s some happy news to brighten your January.   No, it’s not quite a marriage… Though it is an alliance of sorts, and a pretty special one at that.   FORS Associates – An Introduction...Read More

A steep increase in the number of road haulage firms filing for insolvency has cast fresh doubt on the health of the logistics sector.     The second quarter of 2017 generated some worrying figures. Trade bodies, such as the FTA, have expressed concern over what the data indicates, and how it’ll be addressed.  ...Read More

In road haulage, the driver skills shortage is a matter of increasing urgency for trade bodies and businesses.     While recent efforts to address the issue have been praised by the government, a worrying gulf between the needs of the industry, and the manpower available to resolve them, remains.   Chartwise previously reported on...Read More

Two governmental authorities have joined forces to carry out surprise investigations into the working practices of North East waste firms.   The initiative, co-led by the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), was restarted this week after a previous series of inspections found multiple failings in numerous areas, particularly worker...Read More

Brake testing best practice is hitting the haulage headlines once again.   This time, the Traffic Commissioners of Great Britain have issued a warning to operators: it is vital they up the standard of their brake performance testing.   Concerns have risen in the TC’s office after a spate of roadside and premises inspections found...Read More

Following a wealth of enquiries from operators, DVSA has reissued its best practice guidelines for vehicle and trailer brake testing.   Several important aspects of the process have been highlighted.   Firstly, the agency advises operators to load vehicles themselves if possible; if not, to arrange to have it carried out on their behalf. Many...Read More

Calls for the State to address the lack of HGV drivers have increased.   The dip in the number of qualified drivers since the beginning of 2017 is causing alarm among industry bodies. In fact, the severity of the shortfall has brought the continued well-being of the sector into question.   One of those industry...Read More

There’s good news for small operators: the Fleet Operator Recognition Scheme has announced changes to its policy surrounding the £235 evidencing fee currently required for FORS Gold accreditation.   In the same announcement FORS made it clear that, for Gold-accredited members, it will reduce the mandatory period for Bronze re-approval audits from 3 years to 2....Read More

Last year over 440 lorries entered the UK with manipulated tachographs, the Driver Vehicle & Standards Agency (DVSA) has claimed.   A further 400 drivers were believed to be breaking the law, many potentially using ‘interrupters’ to switch off their devices. By using interrupters, a driver can drive while appearing to be on a break....Read More

DVSA has announced two major changes to road haulage in the UK; the first regarding driver fines, the second regarding driver hours.   Whereas currently on-the-spot fines are capped at £300, the new plans mean an offending driver may be charged up to £1,500 at a single roadside inspection. The raised figure takes into account...Read More

Relaxation in Drivers’ Hours Following calls from the Scottish government the Department for Transport has agreed to a temporary and limited, exceptional relaxation of the enforcement of EU drivers’ hours and working-time rules for: drivers involved in the distribution of freight and passenger services within scope of the regulation whose journeys are delayed or extended due...Read More

DVSA propose to make non-compliant operators a thing of the past with aspirations of 100% compliance Updated – 04/04/17 – See final paragraph In May 2015 Caroline Hicks, the head of enforcement at the DVSA, spoke to delegates at the Microlise transport conference and said that she wanted to “completely transform” the way the DVSA...Read More

The Petroleum Driver Passport (PDP) is now entering it’s second year Originally developed by The Downstream Oil Distribution Forum (DODF), a partnership of industry bodies, employers and trade unions, the PDP is an industry initiative backed by the government to ensure a consistent high standard in the training of all tanker drivers in the industry....Read More

DVSA change the rules on Driver CPC Yesterday we received an email from JAUPT the awarding body for Driver CPC training. The email was sent by JAUPT on behalf of the DVSA and it said: Since the acquired rights deadline has passed DVSA has received requests from members of the public, who wish to return...Read More

New Speed Limits for single and dual carriageways in England and Wales   From the 6th of April 2015 the speed limits for HGV’s over 7.5 tonnes on both single and dual carriageways in England and Wales will be increased to the following:   Single carriageways – Increased from 40mph to 50mph Dual carriageways –...Read More

What does George Osborne’s 2015-16 budget plan mean for most hauliers? Here’s a quick summary of the budget plan for 2015-16 and what it could mean to you Fuel Duty could be frozen again George Osbourne promised to cancel the scheduled fuel duty increase which was planned for September and freeze fuel duty once more which...Read More

Your operator licence is your business Whether you are running on a restricted, national or international operator licence you know that keeping that licence is key to running your business. When you apply for your operator licence you are agreeing to maintain certain standards and the DVSA and office of the traffic commissioner will hold...Read More

FORS Fees are here FORS (Fleet Operator Recognition Scheme) was designed to be a safety, fuel efficiency, vehicle emissions and economical operations scheme offering accreditation to UK based hauliers. Developed by TfL (Transport for London) in 2008, FORS was fully subsidised and therefore it was free for operators to join the scheme and have the...Read More

Increased HGV speed limits welcomed by the industry The current speed limits for HGV’s over 7.5 tonnes is laid out in section 6 of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984. However these limits were introduced back in the 1960’s and have never been changed since. Just think how much safer new technologies have made lorries...Read More

Good news for new or expanding operators The financial standing levels are set by the EU regulations in Euros and therefore each member state that does not use the Euro adjusts their rates every year according to currency fluctuations. For standard national and international operators the current figures are set at €9,000 for the first...Read More

Classification of dangerous substances under ADR ADR groups hazardous substances into 9 different categories which are referred to as classes. Each class has danger sign to show it’s major hazard and some classes are then sub-divided further to identify the specific hazard. Here is a brief overview of the 9 classes of dangerous goods under...Read More

INSTRUCTIONS IN WRITING ACCORDING TO ADR Actions in the event of an accident or emergency In the event of an accident or emergency that may occur or arise during carriage, the members of the vehicle crew shall take the following actions where safe and practicable to do so: Apply the braking system, stop the engine...Read More

How to challenge a roadside fine One of the things that really gets a good debate going during our driver cpc training is the topic of roadside fines. Most drivers have a story to tell about spot checks and either being fined or having a lucky escape. I just wanted to let you know that it is...Read More

This is a problem that crops up every now and then for the drivers that I look after and although many think it is not that serious there have been cases where drivers have been fined up to £5000. I don’t know about you but having to fork out £5000 is pretty serious to me. It has...Read More

Double Manning breaks I have had 4 calls this week asking the same question, 3 of which came on the same day, so I assume VOSA may be targeting this topic. People are asking if you are allowed to take a break while having your card in the 2nd man slot, and the first man is driving. The...Read More

Get exact speed reports from a digital tachograph This comes up time and time again so I thought I would let you know about it just in case you ever need to prove your speed to the exact second. As a tachograph analysis bureau we are always getting people asking for forensic analysis for some...Read More

While running a Driver CPC course last weekend on the EU Drivers’ hours and working time directive regulations, one of the drivers questioned the working time regulations and it made me think. Just how many other drivers out there think the same as he did? Basically he was a self-employed driver and under the impression...Read More

Do you know what you are doing when it comes to tachographs? One of the most common questions we get from drivers relates to the rules regarding tachographs and what drivers need to do to stay compliant with the tachograph rules. I have listed some of the drivers responsibilities below and split these into Analogue...Read More

Download your FREE Drivers’ Hours Guide This 35 page pdf explains everything you need to know when it comes to the EU drivers’ Hours rules and the working time directive for drivers (RTD). Written by our head trainer, Chris Allen, this easy to read ebook is written in plain English and contains working examples to...Read More

Chartwise Legislation Update Service Stay within the lines of the law Be the first to know when the law changes. This is a free email update service from Chartwise Uk that offers all who subscribe a simple email detailing and explaining the changes made to the working time directive and driver hours law as and...Read More

Here is a quick demonstration video that shows you how to change the time on a digital tachograph   I hope you have found this useful and if you have any questions about this video or other functions on your digital tachograph please get in touch.Read More

What is the driver CPC initial qualification? If you don’t have acquired rights then you will need to get the Driver CPC initial qualification when you sit your vocational qualification. If you are not sure if you have acquired rights check the Driver CPC Training page for details. So for those of you that don’t...Read More

Do you need tachograph charts analysed quickly? Have you got VOSA or the traffic commissioner coming to see you soon? Our team of experienced analysts can help you get back on track and compliant. From individual charts to months of backlog charts we can help with our priority analysis service. There could be many reasons...Read More

How to apply for a digital tacho card   If you are a professional HGV or PSV driver there is a good chance that you will already be using a vehicle fitted with a digital tacho unit. If you have not yet driven a digital vehicle it is highly advisable that you have a digital...Read More