Running a compliant fleet in Ireland comes down to doing a handful of things consistently and being able to prove it. This checklist pulls the main duties together in one place — daily checks, maintenance records, the CVRT, tachographs and drivers’ hours — with the figures that actually apply here. Use it as your annual baseline, and check each item against the current official sources (rsa.ie, cvrt.ie, the Irish Statute Book) before you rely on it.
1. Daily walkaround checks
A roadworthiness walkaround must be carried out before the vehicle is first used, and no more than once in any 24-hour period, by a competent person — the driver or a mechanic — covering both the interior and exterior Schedule 1 items, including the tachograph.
- Check before first use each day, interior and exterior
- Record every defect with a description and the date and time it was found
- A dangerous defect means the vehicle stays off the road until it is certified repaired
- Keep the check and defect records as part of your maintenance file
Doing this on paper works, but it’s slow to prove. The Traxsit walkaround app guides the driver through every item and time-stamps the record automatically. Full detail in our guide to daily walkaround checks for HGVs.
2. Maintenance and defect records
You must keep maintenance and defect records for at least two years under S.I. 348/2013 (Reg. 10(3)). These are the records an RSA inspector will ask for, and the file that gets a vehicle through its CVRT.
- Retain maintenance and defect records for a minimum of two years
- Log every defect, the repair carried out, and when
- Schedule preventative maintenance — for HGVs and trailers this is commonly the 13-week check between annual tests
- Keep it all in one place so the file is complete, not scattered across notebooks and inboxes
See fleet maintenance & CVRT reminders for how Traxsit keeps this file audit-ready.
3. The CVRT
The Commercial Vehicle Roadworthiness Test (CVRT) is the annual roadworthiness test for goods vehicles, buses and certain trailers, run under the RSA at authorised test centres (cvrt.ie). A pass produces a Certificate of Roadworthiness (CRW) — the document that keeps the vehicle legally on the road.
- Know each vehicle’s test due date and book in good time
- Run a full walkaround and fix defects before the test, not after
- Bring the maintenance file — it shows the vehicle was maintained, not just presented
- Log the result and the next due date
Our CVRT preparation checklist walks through exactly what to have ready.
4. Tachographs and downloads
If you run vehicles with a tachograph, you have to download the data on time and keep it. The Irish requirement is to download the driver card every 21 days and the vehicle unit every 3 months, and to retain the data for at least 12 months.
- Driver card downloaded at least every 21 days
- Vehicle unit downloaded at least every 3 months
- Tachograph data kept for a minimum of 12 months
- Note the Smart Tachograph 2 requirement for 2.5–3.5t vans used internationally from 1 July 2026 — confirm whether any of your vehicles are in scope
Traxsit handles this automatically — see remote tachograph download — and our guides to tachograph rules in Ireland and how often to download tachograph data cover the detail.
5. Drivers’ hours
Where EU drivers’ hours rules apply, the core limits are a 9-hour daily driving limit (extendable to 10 hours twice a week), 56 hours in a week and 90 hours in any fortnight, a 45-minute break after 4.5 hours of driving, 11 hours daily rest and 45 hours weekly rest.
- Daily driving: 9 hours (10 hours up to twice a week)
- Weekly driving: 56 hours; fortnightly: 90 hours
- Break: at least 45 minutes after 4.5 hours’ driving
- Rest: 11 hours daily, 45 hours weekly
- Monitor records for infringements and act on them early
Our full driver hours rules guide explains each limit, and tachograph analysis flags infringements before they become a problem.
6. Keep the evidence in one place
Compliance isn’t only about doing the right things — it’s about being able to show you did them. Failing drivers’ hours and tachograph obligations can carry penalties of up to €5,000 and/or 6 months per offence, with both the driver and the operator liable. The fastest way to stay on the right side of an inspection is to keep checks, defects, maintenance, downloads and hours in a single audit-ready record rather than across paper and spreadsheets.
That is exactly what Traxsit fleet compliance is built to do.
How often must I download tachograph data in Ireland? +
The driver card must be downloaded at least every 21 days and the vehicle unit at least every 3 months, and the data kept for at least 12 months. Traxsit does both downloads automatically, on schedule.
How long do I keep maintenance records? +
Maintenance and defect records must be kept for at least two years under S.I. 348/2013 (Reg. 10(3)). Keeping them in one place means the file is always complete for an inspection or a CVRT.
What are the main drivers’ hours limits? +
Where EU rules apply: 9 hours’ daily driving (10 hours twice a week), 56 hours in a week, 90 in a fortnight, a 45-minute break after 4.5 hours, 11 hours daily rest and 45 hours weekly rest.
What can software actually do for fleet compliance? +
It automates the parts that slip: it runs guided walkaround checks, keeps the maintenance file, schedules downloads, and flags drivers’ hours infringements — and it keeps every record time-stamped in one place so an audit takes minutes, not days.
Traxsit keeps your checks, maintenance, tachograph data and drivers’ hours in one audit-ready record. Book a demo or see fleet compliance.