Band Vans: do you need to use a tachograph and operator license?
There has been quite a fuss online recently about whether or not you need to use a Tachograph and an Operator’s License to tour in a splitter van in Europe. Lets look into this.
For most bands who use splitter vans to tour the answer is that they don’t.
Why is there confusion?
Brexit and Tachographs
When the Brexit deal (properly known as The Trade & Cooperation Agreement between the UK and EU) was ratified it brought with it a new regulation that from 2023 vans with a Gross Weight of over 2,500kg used for transporting goods for hire or reward in the EU would need to have a tachograph in use and be driven under an International Operator License (prior to this the same requirement had been in place for vans with a gross weight of over 3,500kg).
Splitter vans used for touring by bands and artists tend to have a gross weight of 3500kgs (its rare to find heavier band vans than this these days) and so there has been a fair amount of anxiety about what this legal change means for touring.
The Meaning of "Hire or Reward"
The important thing here however is understanding what “hire or reward” actually means. Hire or reward applies if you are paid to move other people’s goods: it means that you are carrying goods for, or on behalf of, someone else. If you are only moving your own goods for playing shows this would not be classed as hire or reward and a tachograph and International Operator License would not be required.
Tour managers or members of touring crew who are paid by artists to drive a splitter van also don’t need to use an Operator License or tachograph when they are driving it falls under the definition of ‘Own Account’ use, defined by EU Regulation 1072/2009 as:
- the goods carried are the property of the undertaking or have been sold, bought, let out on hire or hired, produced, extracted, processed or repaired by the undertaking;
- the purpose of the journey is to carry the goods to or from the undertaking or to move them, either inside or outside the undertaking for its own requirements;
- motor vehicles used for such carriage are driven by personnel employed by or put at the disposal of, the undertaking under a contractual obligation;
- the vehicles carrying the goods are owned by the undertaking, have been bought by it on deferred terms or have been hired;
- such carriage is no more than ancillary to the overall activities of the undertaking.
