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Charlotte Haye 24th March 2020

5 Things HGV Drivers Forget That Make Their Managers Angry

Being an HGV driver is an incredibly rewarding career. But drivers aren’t the only thing that keeps the logistics industry afloat. Many HGV drivers will end up working for another business, either for a haulage firm or as a dedicated driver, usually for the retail sector (since they are the biggest users of HGVs). In this case you will likely have a manager, whose job it is to make sure you are in the right place at the right time, and generally make sure you’re doing your job properly.

At Easy As HGV we work closely not only with drivers on their way up the ranks, but with the companies and managers they will be working for. This means we have a unique insight into the way HGV and haulage firms are run, and we understand exactly what makes these managers tick. And to give you a head start in this world, we wanted to share just 5 things that will drive your manager mad – which generally means you should avoid doing them!

Forgetting To Put Your Driver Card In The Tachograph

This is day 1 stuff, but you’d be surprised how many drivers get forgetful when it comes to their tachographs. It’s actually illegal for a driver to drive an HGV without putting your driver card into the tachograph, so this is a habit you need to get into. It also means there is no ‘qualified driver’ associated with the vehicle, which can make potential insurance claims an absolute nightmare and leave your employer open to thousands of pounds in premiums and bills. On top of the legal bits, not putting your card in means that the tachograph isn’t associated with the driver, which causes huge headaches when it comes to sorting out timesheets and payroll, and could end up meaning you aren’t paid for work you’ve done. It’s a lose-lose situation.

Recording Breaks As ‘Other Work’

Although pressing the wrong button on the tachograph and recording a break as ‘other work’ can seem like a pretty minor issue in the grand scheme of things, the reality is that it can hugely skew your driver hours, and can even cause legal issues, since you are required to take set time as breaks legally. And even though you did take that break, there is no formal record of it, which could incur fines for you and your employer. Correctly recording your breaks is required by law, so it’s something you need to take a little extra time and ensure you’re doing correctly. This way you can make sure you’re getting all the breaks you need to stay rested, and your manager will know that everything is running smoothly.

Not Planning Your Breaks

You may be juggling a pretty hectic schedule day-to-day, but that’s no excuse for poor planning when it comes to your day, and specifically your breaks. It’s understandable that sometimes you forget to account for breaks when planning your day, it causes all sorts of problems for your fleet managers. They need to try and balance time-sensitive deliveries with making sure you’re actually taking the breaks you’re required to and are staying well rested. So while the legal limit for driving might be four and half hours, you need to make sure you’re planning your routes effectively and know where and when you’ll be stopping in advance, rather than leaving to chance and potentially jeopardising delivery times.

Reporting Hours Incorrectly

One sure-fire way to make your fleet manager really make your manager tear their hair out is by misreporting your hours, either by accident or intentionally. Best case? It causes havoc with timesheets and payroll, causing a lot of stress for the employees dealing with it and potentially shorting you out of money you are owed. Worst case, your fleet manager could end up incorrectly believing that you’re breaking the rules when you’re not, or that you aren’t breaking rules when you are. Reporting your hours correctly ensures you and your manager are always on the right side of the law.

Not Being Accessible

To be specific, not being accessible when you’re out on the road. No one expects you to be at their beck and call when you’re home and enjoying time off. But when you’re working, your fleet manager needs to be able to remain in contact with you. Of course, if you’re driving then you aren’t expected to answer the phone (since that’s illegal), but it’s not always easy for managers to tell if a driver is not picking up because they don’t want to. To get around this, you should make sure you are keeping your fleet manager up to date on the latest information, your whereabouts and any issues that might come up and impact your ETA.

At the end of the day, making sure your manager is happy is an important part of your job, and it’s something that will make your day to day life a lot easier. By just avoiding these 5 simple but common errors, you can become a better driver and help ensure the company runs smoothly, keeping your manager happy. If you’d like more information, tips or just to talk about ways our training could help you improve or learn more about being a HGV driver, just get in touch with us today.

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