- €2,100 for five minutes: FENADISMER says Portuguese authorities are imposing €2,100 penalties for individual, minor infringements of the 4-hour-30-minute continuous-driving limit.
- €6,300 for three incidents: A Spanish carrier was penalised after inspectors found overruns of 5, 6 and 10 minutes during a single inspection.
- GNR conducts the inspection, ACT imposes the penalty: The roadside inspection was carried out by the Guarda Nacional Republicana, while the administrative penalties were imposed by the Autoridade para as Condições do Trabalho.
- The court rejected the carrier’s arguments: Tribunal Judicial dismissed an appeal based partly on Article 12 of Regulation 561/2006 and the principle of proportionality, according to FENADISMER.
- EU rules use a lower severity classification: Under Regulation 2016/403, driving continuously for more than 4 hours and 30 minutes but less than 5 hours is classified as a minor infringement.
- Complaint to the European Commission: FENADISMER wants the European Commission to review Portugal’s enforcement practices.
The dispute began with a roadside inspection in Portugal carried out by officers from the Guarda Nacional Republicana (GNR).
Inspectors examined 56 days of tachograph data from a Spanish truck. The records showed three instances in which the driver exceeded the maximum 4-hour-30-minute period of uninterrupted driving by 5, 6 and 10 minutes. The breaches occurred on three separate days.
FENADISMER says the driver took the required breaks and rest periods after each incident and that the relevant data was recorded in the tachograph. Nevertheless, Portugal’s labour inspectorate, the Autoridade para as Condições do Trabalho (ACT), imposed €2,100 for each infringement. The total penalty came to €6,300, or approximately 27,700 Polish zlotys, excluding additional legal costs.
Portuguese court: minor overruns did not remove liability
The carrier challenged the administrative decision in court, relying mainly on two arguments. The first was Article 12 of Regulation (EC) No 561/2006, which allows drivers, in specific exceptional circumstances, to depart from driving and rest-time rules when necessary to reach a suitable stopping place without endangering people, the vehicle or the load.
The carrier also argued that the penalties were disproportionate. Tribunal Judicial rejected the appeal.
According to FENADISMER, the court classified the breaches as very serious infringements and found that the limited length of the overruns did not affect the carrier’s liability.
A legal mismatch: EU rules provide a different classification
The case raises questions about whether Portugal’s approach is consistent with the EU system for grading infringements.
Under Commission Regulation (EU) 2016/403:
- continuous driving of more than 4 hours and 30 minutes but less than 5 hours is considered a minor infringement;
- driving for 5 hours or more but less than 6 hours is classified as a serious infringement;
- only 6 hours or more of uninterrupted driving qualifies as a very serious infringement.
Overruns of 5, 6 or 10 minutes therefore fall into the lowest category under this EU classification. This does not automatically prevent a member state from imposing substantial penalties. Regulation 2016/403 grades the seriousness of infringements but does not establish a single fine scale for the entire European Union. Even so, FENADISMER’s central criticism is the apparent gap between the EU classification and the size of the Portuguese penalties.
The federation argues that minor infringements should not attract penalties that are disproportionate to the conduct involved.
Which Portuguese authority imposes the penalties?
The roles of the various institutions should be distinguished. The Guarda Nacional Republicana (GNR) carries out roadside inspections and downloads tachograph data. Administrative penalties for breaches of driving and rest-time rules are formally imposed by the Autoridade para as Condições do Trabalho (ACT), Portugal’s labour inspectorate.
If a carrier appeals, the case can then be heard by Tribunal Judicial, the ordinary court. Portugal’s enforcement system is based on national rules governing breaches of Regulation 561/2006, including the Regime sancionatório das infrações às disposições do Regulamento (CE) n.º 561/2006.
FENADISMER: tachograph rules must not override safety
The federation also points to a practical problem. In FENADISMER’s view, a driver cannot always bring a truck to a safe stop exactly 4 hours and 30 minutes after starting to drive.
When the limit is approaching and no suitable parking area is available, the driver may have to choose between continuing for a few minutes or stopping in an unsafe location. The organisation argues that an excessively strict approach to minor overruns could undermine the purpose of the rules themselves: improving road safety and drivers’ working conditions.
FENADISMER describes Portugal’s enforcement practice as excessively strict and disproportionate.
Article 12 does not apply automatically
Carriers should nevertheless remember that a lack of available parking does not automatically release a driver from the obligation to comply with driving-time limits. Article 12 of Regulation 561/2006 permits a deviation only in clearly defined circumstances.
By the time the driver reaches a suitable stopping place, they should record the reason for the deviation by hand on:
- a tachograph printout;
- a record sheet;
- or another legally prescribed record of activity.
Exceeding the limit is therefore not automatically justified simply because a parking area was full. The driver must demonstrate the specific circumstances and document the deviation correctly.
Without an appropriate record, it may be much harder to rely on Article 12 during a later inspection or legal proceeding.
FENADISMER will complain to the European Commission
FENADISMER has announced that it will file a formal complaint with the European Commission. The federation wants the Commission to assess whether Portugal’s approach to penalties is consistent with the principle of proportionality and the EU’s infringement classification system.
The organisation also wants enforcement agencies to consider the real conditions in which transport is carried out, particularly traffic, the availability of safe parking and the safety of the vehicle combination. In its communication, FENADISMER said Portuguese authorities had not yet presented their own position on the federation’s allegations.
The issue already has practical consequences for carriers operating through Portugal. An inspection may cover the previous 56 days of activity, and each identified infringement may be assessed and penalised separately.
Even minor deviations from driving-time limits should therefore be properly documented, particularly when a driver intends to rely on the exception provided by Article 12 of Regulation 561/2006.
