According to the current government guidance, the soon-to-be introduced rules will mean changes for any firm or individual who transports goods to, through or within Europe. The changes have come about because of the UK’s deal with the EU – officially known as the Trade and Cooperation Agreement – that was struck in 2020. It is worth bearing in mind that the new rules will not just apply to lorry drivers and people who operate heavy goods vehicles because vans and other light goods vehicles also feature within the changing regulatory framework. This means anyone who operates a European courier service is likely to have to comply. This even includes drivers who transport commercial goods in their cars if they will be making use of a trailer.

In the vast majority of cases, people who are moving goods commercially within Europe will require a vehicle operator licence and a transport manager. So, you won’t only have to declare that you are transporting commercial commodities within the EU – as well as Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway – but you will have to also – declare when you intend on travelling between two points in the EU. Any firm that has drivers who operate HGVs, vans or trailers will have to log onto an EU portal to say where they are coming from and where they are heading to. Owner-operators will also be expected to make the same declarations prior to driving to a UK port and embarking on a journey into Europe from a roll on-roll off ferry service.

To be clear, the use of the EU portal to make the newly required declaration does not cost the driver or their firm anything. It is simply that one needs to be made or drivers may be turned back at the border. Declaring the details of a journey into Europe will be known as a posting declaration. Although no fees for making a posting declaration will be levied, this constitutes another layer of complexity that drivers who travel from the UK to European destinations must take into consideration. Bear in mind that a posting declaration isn’t just required when leaving the UK for Europe, however. As a British-registered driver, if you pick up goods in Italy and transport them to Denmark, for example, you will also need to make a posting declaration for that sort of job, as well.

To break that down a little, the UK government’s current advice is for drivers of UK-registered vehicles to make a posting declaration if they are undertaking any cabotage work. This would include and jobs which involve loading goods in any EU country – plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway – and then unloading them at another location in the same country. Posting declarations are also advised for cross-trade jobs that involve collecting goods in one of the aforementioned countries and then delivering them to another state within the bloc. The same rules will also apply to drivers who are transporting their own goods from one business address in the EU to another. This would affect larger businesses, for example, those that wish to shift their own stock in a UK-registered vehicle from the Netherlands to Germany and vice-versa. The rules on posting declarations will not apply to drivers who are using EU-registered vehicles, however, even if the firm they are working for is British.

Although the rule changes are likely to make a big difference to owner drivers, house removals firms, freight forwarders and courier companies that operate in continental Europe from time to time, it is important to note that it will also affect those who ply their trade on the island of Ireland, too. In short, declarations of commercial journeys within the Republic of Ireland will need to be made, as well, and this includes vehicle operators who are registered in Northern Ireland. Very few exemptions will apply when the scheme is introduced in May. For example, operators won’t be obliged to declare when their drivers are transporting an empty commercial goods vehicle, only when it is being used to actually deliver consignments. The latest advice that the government has published also states that a posting declaration is not required when a driver will be transporting goods from the UK to a non-European country. However, this will mean that they won’t be permitted to either load or unload any goods while they are en route within Europe.

To them prepare for the rule changes when they come into force, haulage firms and owner-operators can already create an account for themselves on the EU portal. Given that an account must already be created for a company to be able to declare a journey, it is the one of the few practical things that firms can do to ensure they are ready. Once a company account has been created, users can invite other people from their haulage or courier firm to share the same access rights. Further information on how to do this is now available at postingdeclaration.eu where there is a help section that answers most of the common questions about the registration process. There is also a tutorial video that has been prepared in advance of the regulatory change.

Nevertheless, the creation of a posting declaration account is not intended to be a difficult task. According to the UK government, hauliers and couriers will need only basic information about their company, transport manager (if they have one) and their employees. To break that down, the company information that will be needed includes the firm’s name, its address and its country of registration. On top of this users will need to declare an email address they want correspondence to be sent to as well as their VAT number, their company registration number and their UK Licence for the Community number. In terms of transport manager information, similar information is required, such as the name, office address, telephone number and email address of the manager in question. In addition, you will need the transport manager’s CPC certificate number.

Finally, owner-operators will need to enter some personal information about themselves into the system. This includes their full name, their date of birth, their email address and their home address. Other required driver information includes their driving licence number and any internal reference number they may have, such as their employee payroll number, for example. Companies that employ multiple drivers will need to enter this sort of information for all their employees who make journeys from the UK to Europe. Employers will also be required to state how long a driver has been employed under contract with a haulage firm although this will not apply to owner-operators. However, both employed and self-employed drivers will need to produce some form of personal ID. This will usually be their passport’s document number, its issue date, its expiry date and a declaration of where the passport was issued. Without such information being registered on the system already, making a full posting declaration is likely to be delayed and, in the worst cases, not possible at all.

Although the idea of making a posting declaration every time a journey is made in Europe with a UK-registered commercial vehicle is likely to be something couriers and road haulage firms could do without, it will mean that well-run companies will be able to streamline their processes in a way that less well-organised ones might not. Importantly, although making a posting declaration for each individual journey a driver makes in each country might be all that is needed among firms that only make international deliveries from time to time, the rules allow for more frequent drivers to register another way. This is by making a posting declaration that will cover individual drivers for up to six months, covering all journeys he or she will make in each country during that period. In other words, the start and end dates of a posting declaration can be set to a maximum of six months after which point a new declaration will have to be made. Regardless of the length of time that a declaration covers, all drivers will need to have a physical – or digital – copy of their declaration on them for the duration of their journey to present, if requested by the authorities.

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Is being a delivery driver, lorry driver, courier a career-ending profession? Is it the sort of job where professional drivers have trouble moving out of the driving industry?

It is common knowledge that many delivery drivers and especially lorry drivers will work their job up until retirement. Yet, is this because such driving jobs are highly secure and often well paid? Or is it because drivers have a hard time finding other jobs? Here are a few things that ex-drivers do for a living.

This article assumes that each driver doesn’t simply move to another driving job. For example, many professional drivers move from deliveries and lorries into ambulance driving, taxi driving, and security van driving. These varieties of careers are not mentioned in this article. This article focuses on what drivers can do after they end their careers as drivers.

Working as Bouncers and Security Guards

It sounds a little cliche and perhaps prejudiced to say that lorry and delivery drivers become bouncers and security guards. It seems to perpetuate this myth that drivers are butch, hard-drinking, hard smoking, tattooed bruisers, but that is not why many drivers become security guards or bouncers.

If a driver has few qualifications, then jobs like security are ideal because they do not demand many qualifications. Security guards have to be trustworthy and sensible, which is also a job requirement for being a driver.

Also, drivers and security personnel need a certain type of mindset. They need to be comfortable being vigilant for hours and hours on end, which is what drivers do all the time. They have to concentrate for hours on the road, just like security people and bouncers have to concentrate for hours as they look for problems. Many of the elements that make for good drivers will also make for good security personnel.

Car, Van and Truck Sales

This is where two stereotypes clash. We think of car salespersons as slick, with tailor-made suits, shiny shoes and a power tie. We don’t think of drivers selling cars and vans. Be they lorry or courier drivers, the image doesn’t match up, but in fact, some drivers are very good salespeople.

It is easier to believe a long-time professional driver when they say this van will give you 180K miles before any serious components need replacing. Like with all jobs, there is a large degree of personality involved in the decision. Some people are not born salespeople, but older and seasoned drivers do make good and reliable vehicle salespeople. Again, this is another situation where qualifications are not a barrier to entry, so they are suitable for ex-drivers.

Amazon Warehouse Workers

This is probably a sign of the times, but many drivers decide to work for Amazon as a driver. The jobs are sometimes seasonal and often turn into full-time jobs for people who are good at driving. However, over a few months or years, the drivers get friendly with admin staff and warehouse workers. They discover that warehouse jobs are better paid, have better hours, and have more perks. They apply for jobs in the warehouses, and they get the jobs because of their previous history with Amazon.

There are many functions within the warehouses where drivers are preferred. Most operating jobs are done very well by drivers. There are lollops that drivers are often comfortable operating. This is another job where qualifications are not needed, and there is enough job variety to keep drivers interested and invested.

Similar things happen with major grocery stores. Now that groceries are delivered to people with vans, there are plenty of drivers who have migrated over to working in this capacity. They too are often seduced by the perks, holidays, and easier life that comes with being a warehouse worker.

Some Drivers Retire

There are some drivers who don’t bother with their career after they finish driving. Some simply retire. If they have been doing the job long enough, then they have enough money saved, have enough investments, and have a big enough retirement fund to allow them to retire. They may take up part-time jobs while retired, but they are often far removed from driving jobs.

Transport Management and Logistics

Some drivers stay within the company they work for and move into the transport management and/or logistics department. As they work, drivers often gain a very good and deep understanding of how the system works. Companies often prefer to hire from within, especially when the drivers show knowledge and expertise on how the systems work.

On a similar note, some drivers move away from driving and become loaders and unloaders. This sometimes happens anyway when a driver loses their license and the company decides to keep them on. In other cases, drivers simply stop driving and become loaders/unloaders because they have lots of experience in that area and there is something about the job they like.

Mechanic or Vehicle Inspector

There are fewer and fewer drivers becoming mechanics these days, probably because the way vehicles are built and fixed has changed so much. These days, parts are custom built for each vehicle, and much of what is done is computerised.

Some drivers stay within a company and become vehicle inspectors or vehicle maintenance people. Just like the unloader/loader and logistics jobs, a driver often moves over to vehicle inspecting because there are available jobs within the company they work for. Many drivers of larger vehicles have to do their own checks before taking vehicles out, so the transition from driver to inspector/maintenance person is pretty smooth.

Machine Operator and Crane Operator

There are many varieties of machine operating that work in a similar way to a car. Some have described operating a crane like trying to drive two cars at once. Since the most skilled drivers are often very coordinated, they can take to crane training very well. Similarly, with the right type of coordination and spatial awareness, some drivers take to becoming machine operators very well. Not only are they good at the job, but they often find it far easier than other people do.

Do Drivers Go On To Higher Education?

In the 90s and 00s, drivers would have kept their jobs as long as they could, often moving up to bigger and better wages. These days, younger and middle-aged people are able to get driving jobs. They can start small with food deliveries and move all the way up to heavy goods driving. Young people can become bus drivers and work their way up to very good wages in whichever direction they wish.

These days, if drivers are able to pass the various types of license required for the many types of driving, they are also able to pass exams on online courses and get real qualifications. Again, the move from driver to higher education and new careers is due to there being more younger and middle-aged drivers.

Getting into the driving profession is not as difficult as it used to be. Getting experience is far easier, so people can move up and carve out a good driving and trucking career. Thanks to the wide variety of distance learning online courses available, people are also able to get a higher education, take exams, and expand their careers in almost any direction they wish.

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