Digital Tachograph vs. Analogue Tachograph

What differs the digital tachograph from the analogue tachograph is the method of operating the device, which has been completely changed to use “microchip” based cards. There are 4 types of cards associated with the new digital tachograph.

Digital Tachograph Driver Cards:

The requirement for the driver card is to download the card every 28 days, however we recommend to this more frequently. The drivercard is read in 10 seconds with our card reader. The data from the card needs to be stored in its original format for at least 1 year and be available for inspection by Transport Officers. The legislation requires the driver to either download the data and retain it themselves or allow the company to download the data from their driver card and retain for inspection.

Digital Tachograph Company Card

Company Cards are issued to operators of goods vehicles. They are used to lock the tachograph information uniquely to your organisation. It will only allow to download information to your company, ensuring a competitor cannot access your vehicle records.

The Company card is used to unlock the vehicle unit (tachograph) to download the vehicle specific data. We recommend that this is done every 56 days.

Digital Tachograph Control Card

Control Cards are issued to the Police. Only this card will enable an enforcement officer to see all the information held on the tachograph in the vehicle.

Digital Tachograph Workshop Card

Digital tachograph workshop cards are issued only to nominated technicians working at an approved tachograph centre with digital status, and who hold a digital training certificate.

The digital tachograph stores the data in an encrypted manner on both a drivers card and on the digital tachograph itself, also referred to as the vehicle unit (VU). The data that is stored on the driver card and on the vehicle unit needs to be download regularly in order to meet the legal requirements.

Download requirements

Both driver card and vehicle unit need to be downloaded periodically.

Driver Card

The requirement for the driver card is to download the card every 28 days. The data needs to be stored for at least 1 year available for inspection. The legislation requires the driver to either download the data and retain it themselves or allow the company to download the data from their driver card and retain for inspection.

Vehicle Unit

There is a mandatory requirement to download every digital tachograph (vehicle unit) every 3 months and store the data for at least 1 year. The downloaded data must be available for inspection by Transport Officers. Failure to comply with this requirement will result in legal proceedings being taken against the owner or operator of the vehicle.