Going over your hours: driving-time overruns
It's the most common fine. Start with the overview in driving-time exceedance, then by case: the daily overrun (past the 9 or 10 hours), the weekly overrun (the 56h), and the one that catches most people out, the accumulated excesses against the 90-hour fortnightly ceiling.
The rests: where most people slip up without knowing
Here you don't even need to drive too long — just not rest what you should. It's covered in insufficient daily rest and, the trickier one because of the compensation, insufficient weekly rest.
Fraud and misuse: what costs you dear
This is another league: tampering with the tachograph (magnets, devices) or using another driver's card isn't an ordinary fine — it carries criminal risk. But often there's no bad intent, just not knowing: incorrect use of the tachograph, driving without a tachograph when you should have one, not downloading the files in time, or slipping up on the border-crossing record.
If the fine has already landed
It's not all lost: plenty can be challenged, especially if there was a technical fault. How to do it, deadlines and grounds that work, in how to appeal a drivers' hours fine. And if you're the operator, mind the company liability for a driver's infringements: showing due diligence is what saves you. For what they can ask for at a stop, keep the inspection survival guide to hand.
What each one costs (severity)
In 2026 the amount isn't the only thing that matters; it's the build-up of serious infringements that really hurts the operator. Broadly:
| Severity | Typical route | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Minor | Roadside fixed penalty | A warning-level hit. But repeated often, it pushes up your OCRS score and the risk of a closer look. |
| Serious | Fixed penalty / court | Builds up against the operator and can trigger a Traffic Commissioner review. |
| Most serious | Court | Tampering and false records can mean prosecution and the operator's licence at risk. |
A word, driver to driver
These days the old tricks don't wash: remote enforcement and GNSS border logging mean almost everything shows up without stopping the lorry. The only way to sleep easy is to be straight and to look at your own data before anyone else does.
Our advice: don't wait for the driver to bring you the ticket. Check your files every week. Catching a driver who can't do a manual entry in time, before the deadline passes, saves you thousands and protects your operator's repute.