Van Tachographs from 1 July 2026: What Fleet Managers and Drivers Need to Do

From 1 July 2026, vans between 2.5 and 3.5 tonnes used on EU international or cabotage work will legally require a tachograph and must follow the same driving and rest rules as lorries.

Tachographs record driving time, speed and distance to ensure compliance. Making them a legal requirement hands both fleet operators and drivers a set of new tasks and challenges.

For Fleet Managers

From 1 July, you’ll need to rethink how you manage drivers, records and risk. That starts with making sure tachographs are properly installed and secured with company locks. Planning journeys in line with EU driving regulations is now a priority, as is accurately capturing driving, resting and working time and maintaining that record.

VisionTrack strongly encourages driver training and awareness. Making sure your drivers understand the changes and how they’re affected is critical. Route planning becomes highly systematic, demanding full visibility to guarantee drivers complete routes within the law, including the EU’s rest rules: a driver can drive a maximum of 4.5 hours before taking a break of at least 45 minutes. Daily driving is capped at 9 hours, extendable to 10 hours twice a week. Weekly driving is limited to 56 hours, and total driving across any two consecutive weeks must not exceed 90 hours. A normal daily rest period is at least 11 hours.

For Drivers

Drivers must obtain and carry a valid driver card to store tachograph data. You may need to manually log activities the tachograph doesn’t capture, support regular data downloads to an archiving system, and cooperate with authorities during inspections. You must also make sure the tachograph is working properly and take part in the relevant training to maintain a clear understanding of how to use it.

We work with global leaders in tachograph supply, so we can point you to the right partner. Tachographs capture the data the law demands; we capture what happened on the road: the insights that help reduce collisions, improve driver behaviour and lower overall risk across your fleet.