Owner-drivers must obey Working Time Directive from May

Owner-drivers must adhere to the Working Time Directive (WTD) from May after escaping inclusion for seven years. The WTD restricts working time to an average 48-hour week and insists that records are kept for two years.

The government has been forced to act after the European Commission began infringement proceedings against 13 member states, including the UK and Ireland. Penalties include unlimited fines.

Amendments to the Road Transport (Working Time) Regulations 2005 come into force in Great Britain on 11 May. Northern Ireland regulations will be amended at the same time.

“We are working with the industry to ensure these changes are implemented in the least burdensome way possible,” says roads minister Mike Penning. He adds he is “extremely disappointed” that the EC withdrew its opposition to including owner-drivers.

The Department for Transport says Vosa will adopt a light touch to enforcement for the first six months, advising rather than prosecuting offenders. No one has yet been prosecuted under the original 2005 regulations, suggesting that this approach is  the norm.

The Road Haulage Association hopes Vosa will take a pragmatic approach. “There are more pressing enforcement issues, such as tachograph  fiddling and diesel laundering,” says Jack Simple, RHA director of policy.

When the regulations were introduced in 2005, owner-drivers were given a derogation until March 2009 before coming into scope. The EC then opposed inclusion as being impractical to police. It wanted to focus on the false self employed who are not free to work for another employer. The battle was lost in June 2010 when the European Parliament rejected the EC’s position.

Keir Fitch, deputy head of the office of EC  transport commissioner Siim Kallas, recently told CM that the argument may return. “We have no choice but to enforce the law. However, if member states find it does not work, we could go back to parliament with a new proposal.”