Why a generic handbook lets you down
Most driver handbooks in circulation were bought off the shelf, copied between depots, and bear little resemblance to how the operation runs. When DVSA examine your systems, when an insurer investigates an incident, or when a driver disputes a disciplinary decision at tribunal, a generic document works against you. It shows that the rules issued to drivers were never really your rules.
A bespoke HGV driver handbook does the opposite. It states in plain English exactly what your drivers must do, in your vehicles, on your work. Because every driver signs for their copy, it creates the audit trail that protects your operator licence, your OCRS score and your business.
Why it matters
Your licence undertakings make you responsible for how your drivers operate your vehicles. If a driver says they were never told, and you cannot produce a signed record of clear written instructions, the Traffic Commissioner will draw their own conclusions. A signed, bespoke handbook closes that gap.
What your handbook covers
Every handbook is built around your operation. A typical J&JL handbook covers the topics below, written in the language drivers use and with the figures they need.
Drivers' hours
Most HGV work falls under the assimilated GB rules based on Regulation (EC) 561/2006, or the AETR rules for some international journeys. The handbook sets out the limits that apply to your work:
- 9 hours' daily driving, extendable to 10 hours twice a week;
- no more than 56 hours' driving in a week, or 90 hours in any two consecutive weeks;
- a 45-minute break after 4.5 hours' driving, which can be split into 15 minutes then 30 minutes;
- 11 hours' daily rest, which can be reduced to 9 hours up to three times between weekly rests;
- 45 hours' regular weekly rest, or a reduced weekly rest of at least 24 hours under conditions.
Where some of your drivers work under the GB domestic rules instead, for example in certain exempt operations, the handbook explains which rules apply to which work.
Working time
The Road Transport (Working Time) Regulations 2005 apply alongside drivers' hours. Drivers must not exceed an average 48-hour working week over the reference period (normally 17 weeks), or 60 hours in any single week. They must not work more than 6 hours without a break: at least 30 minutes where total working time is 6 to 9 hours, and 45 minutes where it is over 9 hours. If night work is done, working time is limited to 10 hours in any 24 hours. The handbook explains what counts as working time, periods of availability and other work, and how drivers record them.
Tachographs
Card responsibilities, mode switching, manual entries, printouts, what to do if the card is lost, damaged or malfunctions, and how infringements are handled. Drivers must be able to produce their records for the current day and the previous 28 days, or 56 days on UK–EU international journeys. Your office must download driver cards at least every 28 days. If you run vans over 2.5 tonnes on international hire or reward, the handbook covers the smart tachograph version 2 requirement that applies to them from 1 July 2026.
Daily walkaround checks and defect reporting
Your check sequence for each vehicle and trailer type, and your defect book or app. DVSA's Guide to Maintaining Roadworthiness expects at least one walkaround check in every 24 hours a vehicle is in service, and more for arduous or off-road work. Defects must be reported in writing, and a named competent person must confirm repairs before the vehicle returns to service. The handbook makes one rule unmistakable: no vehicle moves with a safety-critical defect.
Speed and speed limiters
HGV speed limiters are set at 90 km/h, about 56 mph. The motorway speed limit for goods vehicles over 7.5 tonnes is 60 mph, so on a motorway the limiter, not the speed limit, is the effective cap. Drivers also need the other limits that apply to them. In England and Wales, goods vehicles over 7.5 tonnes are limited to 50 mph on single carriageways and 60 mph on dual carriageways. In Scotland the limits are lower, at 40 mph and 50 mph. Many drivers get these wrong, and speeding offences count against your OCRS.
Mobile phones and distraction
It is illegal to hold and use a phone, sat nav or other device while driving, including when stopped in traffic. The penalty is 6 penalty points and a £200 fine, and professional drivers can also face action on their vocational licence. Hands-free use is not banned, but drivers can still be prosecuted if they are not in proper control. Your handbook states your company policy, which is often stricter than the law, and the consequences of breaking it.
Alcohol and drugs
Your policy stated plainly: limits, testing arrangements if you have them, prescribed and over-the-counter medicines that can affect driving, and the consequences. FORS requires accredited operators to have a drugs and alcohol procedure, and your insurer will expect one.
Load security
Restraint methods for your cargo types and vehicle bodies, pre-departure checks and what to do when a load shifts or a customer loads badly, following DVSA's load securing guidance.
Vehicle condition, fuel and AdBlue
Drivers' responsibilities between inspections: tyres, lights, fluid levels, warning lamps, damage reporting and keeping the cab and load space in a fit state. The handbook also sets out how drivers record fuel and AdBlue. If you are FORS accredited, this matters more than it used to. From 1 September 2026, FORS Standard v7.2 expects fuel data to be collected by vehicle registration, including AdBlue where relevant and the diesel-to-AdBlue ratio, and missing ratio calculations attract an action point. Clean, consistent driver entries make that easy. Idling rules belong here too. Under regulation 98 of the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986, leaving an engine running unnecessarily while stationary on a road is an offence.
Incidents, breakdowns and reporting
The exact steps your drivers follow after a collision, breakdown or near miss, with contact numbers. Most collisions on public roads are not reportable under RIDDOR, but injuries during loading and unloading can be. The handbook tells drivers to report everything to you so you can decide.
Licences, Driver CPC and health
Drivers' duty to tell you about endorsements, medical conditions and eyesight problems; your licence checking regime; and Driver CPC. Drivers need 35 hours of periodic training every five years. Since December 2024, UK-only drivers can use National Driver CPC courses, but taking one restricts them to UK-only driving.
Site rules and agency drivers
PPE, reversing and banksman procedures, tail lift use, delivery conduct and customer site rules, plus an induction version so agency and casual drivers are covered from their first shift.
Acknowledgement
Issue records and signatures for every driver, including agency staff, with a record of each revision.
What operators get wrong
- Stating that the speed limiter setting is the legal maximum for HGVs on motorways. It is not: the limit is 60 mph and the limiter is set lower.
- Telling drivers to carry 28 days of records when they run international work that needs 56.
- Having a defect procedure that names a person who no longer works for the business.
- Issuing handbooks without a signature record, or never reissuing after changes.
- Leaving agency drivers out completely.
Branded, practical, actually read
A handbook only works if drivers read it and managers use it. We write in clear, direct language and structure the document so a driver can find an answer in seconds. We brand it properly to your business, because a document that looks like it matters gets treated like it matters. You receive a print-ready version for cab packs and inductions and a PDF for issuing digitally.
If you brief drivers digitally, Roadworthy, our fleet compliance software, can issue driver briefings with sign-off and run walkaround checks by QR code on the driver's phone, so the handbook and the daily records match.
Keeping it current
Rules move. Since 31 December 2024, drivers on UK–EU international work must be able to produce 56 days of records, National Driver CPC courses have arrived, DVSA has revised its roadworthiness guide, and from 1 July 2026 light goods vehicles on international hire or reward need smart tachographs. Every J&JL handbook comes with an annual review, so the document you rely on in year three is as defensible as the day it was issued. When rules change mid-year, we tell you what needs updating and why.
Pricing and timescale
Pricing is on enquiry, based on your fleet size and the policies and procedures to be included — confirmed free of charge at your initial consultation. We agree a fixed fee before work starts.
A handbook typically takes two to three weeks from consultation to final issue, depending on the size of the operation and how quickly your team reviews the draft. If you have an audit or hearing coming up, tell us and we will prioritise.
Sources and further reading
- Drivers' hours: assimilated and AETR rules (GOV.UK)
- Drivers' hours: working time rules (GOV.UK)
- Tachograph rules (GOV.UK)
- Speed limits (GOV.UK)
- Using a phone while driving: the law (GOV.UK)
- Guide to maintaining roadworthiness (DVSA)
- Driver CPC periodic training (GOV.UK)
Checked against the sources above on 5 October 2026.
