From 4 December 2011, transport businesses will be subject to stricter rules which could result in loss of good reputation and withdrawal of transport permits.

Transport businesses should tighten their internal controls to ensure that their operations are compliant.

The new rules implement EU regulations introducing the so-called 'seven deadly sins' of international transportation, which are:

  1. (a) Exceeding the maximum 6-day or fortnightly driving time limits by margins of 25 % or more.
    (b) Exceeding, during a daily working period, the maximum daily driving time limit by a margin of 50 % or more without taking a break or without an uninterrupted rest period of at least 4,5 hours.
  2. Not having a tachograph and/or speed limiter, or using a fraudulent device able to modify the records of the recording equipment and/or the speed limiter or falsifying record sheets or data downloaded from the tachograph and/or the driver card.
  3. Driving without a valid roadworthiness certificate if such a document is required under Community law and/or driving with a very serious deficiency of, inter alia, the braking system, the steering linkages, the wheels/tyres, the suspension or chassis that would create such an immediate risk to road safety that it leads to a decision to immobilise the vehicle.
  4. Transporting dangerous goods that are prohibited for transport or transporting such goods in a prohibited or non-approved means of containment or without identifying them on the vehicle as dangerous goods, thus endangering lives or the environment to such extent that it leads to a decision to immobilise the vehicle.
  5. Carrying passengers or goods without holding a valid driving licence or carrying by an undertaking not holding a valid Community licence.
  6. Driving with a driver card that has been falsified, or with a card of which the driver is not the holder, or which has been obtained on the basis of false declarations and/or forged documents.
  7. Carrying goods exceeding the maximum permissible laden mass by 20 % or more for vehicles the permissible laden weight of which exceeds 12 tonnes, and by 25 % or more for vehicles the permissible laden weight of which does not exceed 12 tonnes.

In addition to this list, a further list of serious infringements is being drawn up by the European Commission.

Any transport business penalised for one of these serious infringements will face administrative proceedings including a premises check.

Law: EC Regulation No 1071/2009 dated 21 October 2009

This article was written for Law-Now, CMS Cameron McKenna's free online information service. To register for Law-Now, please go to www.law-now.com/law-now/mondaq

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The original publication date for this article was 25/10/2011.