It is even more important, since from 1 July 2026, new EU mobility regulations will extend tachograph and drivers’ hours requirements to light commercial vehicles between 2.5 and 3.5 tonnes used in international transport.
Do breaches happen in real schedules?
In light fleets management, the breach is often hidden in the working day… Why? Because shifts include loading, unloading, checks, cleaning and waiting, and these activities can push the day beyond limits even when hours of driving look fine.
One light-vehicle framework shows where domestic rules apply, since it sets a maximum of 10 hours driving in a 24-hour period, and a maximum of 11 hours on duty on any day where driving takes place. “Duty time” includes the wider set of work activities, not just driving. The same framework also describes that, if driving is under 4 hours in a day, the duty limit is not applied, but the operator still needs evidence that the threshold was respected. Without a complete view of duty time and working time, it becomes harder to plan within maximum hours and monitor fatigue-related risk.
Which rules apply to a 3.5-tonne van?
Authorised mass is the starting point, and the vehicle combination matters when towing. A van can sit within one regime on its own, then move into EU drivers’ hours rules once the van and trailer operate as a heavier combination, bringing tachograph duties alongside stricter limits.
Under EU rules on legal driving hours, the structure is clear. Daily driving is normally limited to 9 hours with restricted extensions, weekly driving is capped at 56 hours, the total over two consecutive weeks is capped at 90 hours, and a 45-minute break is required after 4.5 hours driving (drivers must take a break), with a defined split permitted.
Mindset “it’s only a van” is risky, remember that!
That is why “it’s only a van” can become a costly assumption. The deciding factor is how it is used, what it is coupled with, and whether the trip falls inside a regulated scope and which rules apply.
The common compliance traps in day-to-day operations
And here are 3 main traps. We mean:
- The first trap is assuming that “driving time” is the whole story. In the light-vehicle framework described above, the duty limit is driven by all work linked to the transport activity, including loading, unloading, and waiting where the end time is not known. This is where multi-stop work can go out of bounds even if driving stays inside the cap.
- The second trap is missing time that does not feel like road driving. The same framework highlights that off-road driving for operational site work can still count toward the driving limit. That matters on large sites where vehicles move for long periods without leaving the perimeter.
- The third trap is record fragility. If records are incomplete, illegible, or inconsistent, an operator may be unable to prove that an exemption or a threshold was respected. The reliable way to handle this is to generate evidence in the workflow, not reconstruct it later.
What a solid compliance workflow looks like when it is measurable
A workable approach links reliable data capture, clear responsibility, and planning that respects rest periods and limits.
A measurable workflow typically includes:
- a rule map for each vehicle and for common combinations (van only, van plus trailer), based on authorised mass and use case
- a consistent method to capture both driving time and wider duty activities
- documented handling of exemptions and thresholds, backed by records rather than recollection
- archiving and retrieval that supports the required look-back period for inspections
Compliance sits inside duty of care. The vehicle is treated as a workplace, and responsibility is framed around three areas: the vehicle being fit for purpose, the driver being eligible and not fatigued, with weekly rest periods protected, and the journey being planned in a way that does not force rule-breaking.
How we use telematics to make compliance manageable also for vans?
We are a telematics, IT, and IoT provider established in 2003. Our modular solutions cover GPS tracking, electronic logbooks, mobile time tracking, transport management and shipping systems, swarm logistics, and API integrations.
Mixed fleets benefit from three building blocks.
- Electronic logbooks built from vehicle activity signals (such as ignition status) plus driver input, so business and private travel can be separated and records become consistent over time.
- Remote tachograph data collection for vehicles that operate under tachograph obligations, so downloads and archiving are not dependent on the vehicle being in the yard.
- Live visibility for planners, where dispatch decisions are informed by remaining hours rather than assumptions.
For fleets that use employee-owned vehicles for work, the same duty of care still applies. Bringing those trips into the same logging workflow helps keep records consistent and reduces blind spots, especially when operations mix company vehicles and personal vehicles.
Quick conclusion
3.5-tonne vans sit at the junction of flexible operations and strict time limits. The rules apply can change with towing, with international work. Mentioned above new tacho regulations for vans 2026 with the EU scope expansion for certain light vehicles and are strictly connected with tacho, tracking time and many different factors. When records are generated as part of the day and planning is based on remaining time, compliance becomes a repeatable process instead of an after-the-fact scramble.
