EU tacho bombshell – deadline approaches for non-smart tachos

NB: This story has been amended following receipt of other, correcting, information. The original story was based on written manufacturer advice we received, and every attempt was made to locate corroboration from the EU website. We have now investigated further, and we are advised that the second deadline, for pre-2019, non-smart tachos, comes in in 2024, not 2023 as the printed advice we had received had stated. We apologise for this error.

An EU tachograph bombshell which may have gone ‘under the radar’ will see the new Version 2 smart tacho become compulsory on many pre-2019 coaches by 31 December next year.

The new smart tacho adds border logging, GPS location and more security to the original smart tacho which became a legal requirement in new vehicles registered after June 2019. Now, the EU has passed legislation to make Version 2 mandatory on all coaches built after 21 August this year, and that it must be retrofitted to vehicles without a smart tacho by 31 December 2024.

Coaches with older digital and analogue tachos will get caught up only if they travel across the Channel. Coaches with a Version 1 smart tacho get a derogation until 18 August 2025, after which they will need to be upgraded to Version 2 for European travel. By 1 July 2026, all vehicles over 2.5t are in scope.

Tacho experts Verizon say the new version adds significant functionality: ‘This new device not only records a driver’s activity but also boasts additional functionalities geared towards enforcing EU legislation on cabotage and posting of workers. These features include the ability to record border crossings and detect the precise location of a vehicle during load/unload operations.

‘The new smart tachograph version 2 is set to enhance the anti-tampering resistance of its predecessor. This will be achieved through a range of innovative features, such as the ability to authenticate satellite signals and the installation of an internal sensor that operates independently from the external motion sensor.’