The truth about hours calculators
If you are new to HGV work, keeping on top of driving time, breaks, and rest can feel overwhelming. Plenty of apps and websites offer an “HGV hours calculator.” Most of them only know what you type in by hand.
Your digital tachograph card already records the detail that matters. Any small mistake in a manual calculator — a missed break, wrong duty start, or forgotten other work — can give a false sense of safety. Fines and infringements follow the card, not a spreadsheet.
Use this page to learn the limits and sketch a day. For day-to-day awareness — live timing in the cab, card download from your phone, and compliance review on the web — use a tool built for that job.
Recommended
HGV Time Pilot — Android app + web dashboard
LearnHGV and HGV Time Pilot are sister tools: we help you find training and first jobs; Time Pilot helps you stay aware of hours once you are on the road. Drive with the Android app, review with the web — one login for both. Free to install; optional Pro for full compliance review and reports.
- Live cab timer — Driving, Other Work, POA, and Break/Rest with plain-English heads-up before key EU 561 / Working Time limits
- Tachograph card download — USB OTG on Android, auto-upload to your account (supported readers)
- Web dashboard — drive status, 14-day preview on Free; full day-by-day review, WTD periods, and PDF reports on Pro
- Does not replace the vehicle tachograph — it runs alongside it
Tip for new drivers
If your shift includes a lot of non-driving work, it is easy to forget Working Time breaks and risk an infringement. Taking a 15-minute break early in the shift can help extend how long you can work before another working-time break is due (simplified guidance — check current rules). This does not replace a required driving break after 4½ hours at the wheel. Time Pilot’s timer modes (including Other Work and POA) are built to help you see that split clearly.
Quick day estimate
Estimate only — not legal adviceRough check for planning. Real compliance comes from your digital tachograph — and companions like HGV Time Pilot that time the shift in the cab and read the card — not from typing numbers into a webpage.
Planned day: 5 h total · 4 h driving
- Driving time is within the usual 9-hour daily driving limit (before any legal extension).
- About 30 min of driving left before a mandatory 45-minute driving break is due (simplified).
Drivers’ hours at a glance
Simplified UK/EU-style limits for goods vehicles. Always confirm against current GOV.UK / DVSA guidance and your operator’s rules.
- Daily driving
- Normally 9 hours (extend to 10 hours twice a week)
- Weekly driving
- Maximum 56 hours
- Fortnightly driving
- Maximum 90 hours in any two consecutive weeks
- Driving break
- 45 minutes after 4½ hours driving (or 15 + 30 split)
- Daily rest
- Normally 11 continuous hours (limited reductions allowed)
- Weekly rest
- Normally 45 hours (reductions possible with compensation)
Frequently asked questions
What is the maximum daily driving time for HGV drivers in the UK?
Under EU/UK drivers’ hours rules, daily driving is normally limited to 9 hours. You may extend this to 10 hours twice in a week.
When do I need a driving break?
After 4½ hours of driving you must take a break of at least 45 minutes before driving again. That break can be split into at least 15 minutes followed by at least 30 minutes.
Are online HGV hours calculators accurate enough for compliance?
Manual calculators only know what you type in. Your digital tachograph card holds the authoritative record. Use webpage estimators for planning only — for compliance, rely on tachograph data or tools that read the card.
What is HGV Time Pilot?
HGV Time Pilot is a UK-built companion for professional drivers: an Android app for live shift timing and USB tachograph card download, plus a web dashboard for compliance review, Working Time tracking, and reports. One account works on both. It does not replace the vehicle tachograph.
Does HGV Time Pilot replace my tachograph?
No. The digital tachograph and driver card remain the legal record. Time Pilot runs alongside them — plain-English alerts and analysis to help you stay aware, not a substitute for the equipment in the cab.
What about Working Time Directive breaks vs drivers’ hours?
Drivers’ hours rules cover driving, breaks from driving, and rest. Working Time rules also cover other work. A common tip: taking a short working-time break early can help manage a long duty day — but it does not replace a required driving break.
Training or a first HGV job?
LearnHGV lists training centres direct — no brokers — and UK-wide job ads for new passers.