In my new job I keep having to sign for infringements (well 2 so far)
The first was a manual entry error when I entered all of the other work/rest/other work between shifts, and since it was my first time without help I went back through it to double check everything and then I don’t know what happened but the whole 60 hrs were recorded as other work.
The second was, I had put my card in, done my manual entry and then when I was out driving I noticed it said “Driving without card” I now know all you need to do is press ok to clear it, because it’s an old message because the trucks are always shunted around the yard without a card in. The only way I could think of to clear the message was to remove my card (while parked on other work) and reinsert it = infringement for 1 minute.
I’m now fairly happy with working a tacho, it just these infringements now catching up with me. As far as I’m concerned, if I do a manual correction on my paper printout I have corrected any error and done nothing wrong.
What’s the consequences of an infringement and how long do they stay on your records for?
Many thanks.
Does the company make you do manual entries? If not, don’t do them.
If it is enforced, get yourself a “crib sheet” to walk you through it step by step. If you can’t find one online yourself I can suggest a place you could get one.
As for the infringements, these ones are purely internal, though DVSA would question as to why you removed your card during the shift, but your printout with written explanation should stop you getting a penalty.
Just so you know in future, technically it is an offence to remove your driver card during a shift without permission, though oddly the regulations don’t say who is authorised to give you permission 
It won’t be a problem for you on this occasion, or ever as long as you’re not removing it to cover up an offence, but you should be aware that it is technically an offence so you shouldn’t remove the card unless you really need to.
To clear “driving without card”, I think you just press ok.
Infringements are normally where you haven’t complied with either the drivers’ hours rules or the road transport working time regulations. The printouts give you an idea of severity and what the potential roadside penalty may or may not be. Sometimes there is a points system to grade the severity and drivers’ hours infringements are normally more severe.
I personally don’t see the issue with taking the card out. It is a perfectly valid thing to do in certain circumstances.
If you are going to be away from the vehicle doing other things and possibly taking a break as well, then you would need to go back to the vehicle to change on and off break. This may not be convenient. If you eject, you can make the entries when you get back.
Another one might be that the vehicle is going into the workshop for a simple quick bit of maintenance. As we know, mechanics sometimes like to let the engine run (maybe even for a valid reason or just because they like the sound, I dunno).That could mean that the latest all singing all dancing telemetry decides to send messages back to the office saying you are committing the deadly sin of idling for too long. Don’t want that, so card out while someone else has the vehicle.
Another rule of thumb is that if you don’t have the keys yourself, then card out. If you know that spare sets are often used in the yard, also card out while you are away from the vehicle.
I totally agree that if you are with the vehicle, there is very little reason to eject, but if you do, then simply do an entry selecting the correct mode for the time the card was out. Anyone doing a vehicle download would be able to see the vehicle didn’t move, so no big deal really.
Was the issue that you didn’t do a manual entry to cover the minute? In this case it may flag because it would be classed as “unknown” time. Technically you don’t have a complete record for the day in that case.
It’s unlikely that removing the driver card will ever be an issue unless it raises suspicion that you’re trying to cover up an offence, however it is technically an offence to needlessly withdraw your driver card without permission during a shift where you keep the same vehicle.
Clearly if it’s not practical to get back to the vehicle to change modes ejecting the card is the only practical thing to do.