Driving a van over the festive period? Remember…
16th Dec 2022
The end of the year is here and as we all know it gets incredibly busy! But there’s some crucial things not to forget whilst you’re out on the road – especially when driving a van the DVSA remind us.A
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What happens if you commit tachograph fraud?
9th Nov 2022
What is
tachograph fraud?
Tachograph
fraud is usually when a driver/ haulier has falsified records in order to
illegally drive their HGV for longer periods than drivers’ hours ruling
permi
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The Consequences of a Bridge Strike - Discover 7 Ways You Can Reduce the Risk...
27th Oct 2022
Network Rail research from November 2020 has shown 43% of
lorry drivers admit to not measuring their vehicle before heading out on the
road, and 52% admit to not taking low bridges into account.
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SmartLicence demo has unexpected outcome
27th Oct 2022
Recently,
our SmartCompliance team onboarded a new customer onto our SmartLicence driving
licence verification platform. The customer had already utilised our SmartAnalysis so
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DVSA operation targeting high risk vehicles found 1 in 10 had the most dangerous mechanical issues
27th Oct 2022
The Investigation
A GB-wide investigation carried out by the DVSA showed
serious faults uncovered on HGVs and light commercial vehicles included problems
with steering, suspension, wheels, tyre
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Plans to allow car license holders to drive trucks are fought with safety concerns
27th Sep 2022
In an
attempt to tackle the ever-growing shortage of HGV drivers the government has
proposed multiple ideas on how they can solve the issues our industry is currently
facing.
The most
conte
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Could vans require tachographs in the not so distant future?
30th Aug 2022
Under DVSA rules, all commercial vehicles over 3.5 tonnes
used in the course of business must record their movements using a tachograph. Tachographs
record information about driving time, speed and
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Vans come under scrutiny from lack of safety checks
30th Aug 2022
According to the DVSA 89% of vehicles stopped by their partners (Avon & Sommerset Police, Bristol City Council and HMRC) in Bristol at the beginning of August were found to be dangerous.Defects includ
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How to carry out daily HGV walkaround safety checks
18th Jul 2022
HGV walkaround safety checks are crucial for any vehicle operation. HGV drivers, in particular, need to be extra vigilant when carrying out these safety checks as they will be able to stop potenti
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How difficult is it to analyse your tachograph data?
18th Jul 2022
Who can use SmartAnalysis?
We’ve had a few enquiries from people who are wondering if they can analyse their own tachograph data using SmartAnalysis. Their assumption was that they needed an externa
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Check your vehicle not your texts
18th Jul 2022
In a recent road traffic stop a driver of a articulated HGV was pulled over as they were seen texting whilst driving.
Once stopped, the Operations Patrol Unit for Worcestershire which runs roads po
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1 in 5 Drivers Admit Taking Penalty Points for Someone Else
18th Jul 2022
Police are aware of a common licence fraud that seems to be becoming all too common. Taking penalty points for another driver may seem like a selfless thing to do, taking the points and claiming th
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Top Gear Highlighting the Responsibilities of HGV Drivers
18th Jul 2022
In the latest instalment of Top Gear on BBC One we were treated to an episode of HGV heaven. Seeing the trio Chris, Freddie and Paddy get to grips with some of the finest machinery our industry has to
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Top 3 Ways Transport Managers can prevent HGV Accidents
18th Jul 2022
Taking Frequent Rests
No, I don’t mean you as the transport manager but your drivers, yes! Analysing your drivers’ tachograph data and ensuring that they’re taking the rest time required to not only
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How often should you check drivers’ licences?
18th Jul 2022
Checking driver’s licences is a key part in transport managers staying compliant and monitoring drivers penalty’s and discretions. In a recent update (April, 2022) to the Senior Traffic Commissioner’s
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Confused about drivers' hours compliance?
Posted by AndrewT on 20th May 2022
What are drivers' hours rules and regulations? What is the difference between EU drivers' hours (which apply in the UK) and GB domestic drivers' hours?
You can get the full picture in our easy to und
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What else does Descartes do?
Posted by rrowlands@descartes.com on 18th May 2022
One stop to smarter compliance
In this age where technology has taken over, where we have a list of passwords the length of a HGV and the list of platforms we use on a daily basis continues t
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Hands off the wheel?
Posted by rrowlands@descartes.com on 18th May 2022
Here’s another scenario to add to the list of ‘What not to do when driving!’.
Thames Valley Police reported they pulled over a HGV driver after he was caught driving with no hands on the wheel. The d
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How do you know if a new job will cause a drivers’ hours infringement?
Posted by AndrewT on 25th Apr 2022
A customer asked me recently if there was a tool from Descartes that allows them to pre-empt any potential drivers’ hours issues when they look to take on a new job. It appears they may have turned wo
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Fleet operators call for changes to Driver CPC
Posted by AndrewT on 11th Mar 2022
According to recent research 95% of commercial road transport operators want changes to the way that the Driver Certificates of Professional Competence (Driver CPC) is delivered. Operators are lookin
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New to digital tachographs? - Who is responsible for what?
Posted by AndrewT on 8th Mar 2022
What are the driver's and operators basic responsibilities? Some transport operators use vehicles fitted with digital tachographs, but have no idea on how to use them. This can lead to expensive fines
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