Based on REGULATION (EC) No 561/2006 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL
‘weekly rest period’ means the weekly period during which a driver may freely dispose of his time and covers a ‘regular weekly rest period’ and a ‘reduced weekly rest period’:
- — ‘regular weekly rest period’ means any period of rest of at least 45 hours,
- — ‘reduced weekly rest period’ means any period of rest of less than 45 hours, which may, subject to the conditions laid down in Article 8(6), be shortened to a minimum of 24 consecutive hours;
Article 8 (6) In any two consecutive weeks a driver shall take at least:
- — two regular weekly rest periods, or — one regular weekly rest period and one reduced weekly rest period of at least 24 hours. However, the reduction shall be compensated by an equivalent period of rest taken en bloc before the end of the third week following the week in question.
A weekly rest period shall start no later than at the end of six 24-hour periods from the end of the previous weekly rest period. Where a driver chooses to do this, daily rest periods and reduced weekly rest periods away from base may be taken in a vehicle, as long as it has suitable sleeping facilities for each driver and the vehicle is stationary.
By law, drivers are not allowed to take weekly rest periods in the vehicle!
How it can be checked
- Surprise in the action
- The driver’s card was inserted during the regular (45-hour) weekly rest period.
In which countries are they taken seriously?
Click here for a summary of how weekly rest is interpreted and monitored.
Can we take two reduced weekly breaks in a row?
Yes, the law does not exclude.Care should be taken to ensure that every two weeks there is at least one regular (45-hour) and one reduced (24-hour) weekly rest period. The legislation allows weekly rest periods that are divided into two weeks to be counted for either week, but not both. However, the reduction must be compensated before the end of a third week following the week in question.