• SECTOR GUIDE

Tachograph compliance for removals firms

Removals work is unpredictable by nature: multiple drivers, long days, variable routes, overnight jobs and crews who drive, load and carry. That makes Working Time records particularly tricky, because so much of the day is "other work" rather than driving - and it's an area operators frequently get wrong.

Tacho Agent untangles it for you, analysing tachograph and driver card data to manage Working Time correctly, catch drivers' hours infringements, and keep your records audit-ready for the DVSA. Get a free compliance report to see where your business stands.

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• THE RISKS

Common compliance risks

The issues that most often catch operators out.

"Other work" fills the day

Most of a removals day is loading, carrying and assembling - all working time, not rest.

Very long working days

Variable, unpredictable jobs make the 48-hour average and 60-hour weekly cap hard to manage.

Crew who also drive

Staff who load and drive blur duty records and can quietly exceed WTR limits.

Overnight and multi-day jobs

Long-distance removals can tip into EU rules and need careful rest planning.

• TAILORED GUIDANCE

Sector guides

In-depth guidance written for removals companies.

• REFERENCE GUIDES

General reference guides

Full regulation references that apply across every sector.

See all guides →

• COMMON QUESTIONS

Compliance FAQs

Quick answers to what operators ask us most.

How far back must an international haulage driver’s records go?

Following the DVSA's 2025 guidance update (https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2025/402/pdfs/uksiem_20250402_en_001.pdf), international goods drivers travelling between the UK and EU must be able to produce 56 days of records - double the historic 28 day requirement.

If a driver mixes domestic and EU-rules journeys within the same week, do the rest requirements change?

Yes - where the two scopes overlap in the same day or week, any GB domestic driving is treated as “other work” for EU/AETR rest purposes, meaning the stricter of the two regimes ends up governing the whole period.

Does sharing a load (groupage) change which drivers’ hours rules apply?

It doesn’t.

The same EU/GB driving, break and rest rules apply to any vehicle over 3.5 tonnes used for hire or reward, whether it’s carrying one household’s full move or a shared groupage load.

When a removal crosses into the EU, is that an AETR job or an assimilated-rules job?

Assimilated EU rules are the default for journeys into the EU; AETR only comes into play where the route includes transit to or through a non EU member state such as Switzerland, Norway or Turkey.

How do you work out which of the three rulebooks governs a particular job?

It's determined by where the vehicle goes.

Assimilated (EU) rules cover goods vehicles over 3.5 tonnes operating within the UK and vehicles over 2.5 tonnes used for hire or reward travelling between the UK and EU (bar specific exemptions); AETR rules take over for international journeys that start, end or transit through no EU member states.

GB domestic rules fill the gap wherever neither of the other two applies.

What’s the weight trigger for needing an Operator’s Licence?

For domestic hire-or-reward work, the threshold sits at 3.5 tonnes. Since 21 May 2022, that scope has widened to also catch light goods vehicles of 2.5 to 3.5 tonnes maximum laden weight when used internationally for hire or reward, reflecting commitments under the UK–EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement.

• WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY

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Excellent service 5 star well deserved

Easy to deal with, prompt reports, and it keeps us on the right side of compliance. Exactly what a haulage firm needs without the cost of employing someone to do it in-house. Recommended.

- CT, Global Director, international removals, storage and relocation firm

• FIRST REPORT FREE

See where your fleet stands

A free, no-obligation compliance report based on your own tachograph
data — with the issues found and plain-English actions to fix them.

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