Work time and logbooks - summary of requirements

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Since 1 October 2007, new work time and logbook rules have applied to commercial drivers.

Work time

• Instead of recording ‘on duty’ time and driving hours separately, all time spent working must be recorded as work time.
• You can work for up to 5½ hours before taking a rest break of at least 30 minutes.
• After 13 hours at work, you must take a break of at least 10 hours.
• A cumulative work day cannot exceed 24 hours but can be less.

Maximum hours per cumulative work day

After 70 hours of work time (known as a cumulative work period), you must have a minimum 24-hour rest break. The number of cumulative work days it takes to reach the 70-hour total depends on the number of hours worked in each cumulative work day (the maximum is 13 per day).

Delays and extensions to work time

Land Transport NZ cannot approve extensions to work time over the phone. To get an extension to work time due to an unforeseeable delay, you must record the reason for the delay in your logbook so it can be used as a defence if required. The reason for the delay must be verifi ed from an independent source.

General use logbook – activity grid

The ‘general use’ logbook form has two activity grid columns: work time and rest time. You must complete the activity grid when you are using a general logbook.

Exemptions

All current logbook, on-duty and driving-time exemptions expire on 1 April 2008 and cease to have eff ect after this date.

To find out more

The Work time and logbooks booklet (PDF 968 KB) will give you more information.

Page created: 2 May 2008