FAQ: Does POA Count As Working Time?
Under the UK's Working Time Directive, Periods of Availability do not count as working time. This means that they don't count towards daily, or weekly driving limits.
It also (understandably) is not considered Driving time under EU law.
Does POA count as Break?
In the EU, POA is automatically counted as Break for legislative purposes. However, the UK does not consider POA to be Break time under the WTD. This is confusing, especially since many tachographs are European-made, and are programmed to calculate POA as Break time too, which can lead to inaccurate records.
For this reason, many UK Drivers try to avoid using POA on their tachographs.
Does POA Count As Working Time: When should I use POA?
POA is used when Drivers have to wait for a predefined amount of time, and are aware of the wait in advance.
For example, if you arrive an hour early for a scheduled delivery, that's POA, because you know how long you'll be waiting in advance. If though, the recipient were to be late showing up, and doesn't inform you how long they'll be, this time is classed as Other Work, as you aren't aware how long the wait will take.
However, on the majority of tachograph units, using POA resets the driving time on the tachograph. This can make it difficult to assess how much time you have remaining in the day, when breaks are required, etc.
For this reason (as well as the issue with tachographs considering POA to be Break time) many drivers simply use Break instead of POA.
Summary: Does POA Count As Working Time?
In short, no. POA is not counted as working time under the UK's WTD, and will not contribute towards the maximum weekly limit of 60 hours, or the maximum weekly average of 48 hours.
Further Reading:
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