Manual entries on the tachograph – how to make them and how to spot errors

A manual entry fills in a period in which the driver card was not in the tachograph – most often rest at home. A badly made entry means a gap in the records or an “unknown activity”, and during an inspection – a fine. DDDStart checks entries automatically.

When the driver makes a manual entry

When the card is inserted, the tachograph asks about the period since the card was last withdrawn. The driver fills it in with activities (usually rest, sometimes other work or availability) and enters the country where the previous working day ended and the new one starts. In 2nd generation tachographs the places of loading and unloading are also entered.

Most common mistakes

• No entry – the period without a card remains an “unknown activity”,
• No country for the start or end of the working day,
• A rest entry while the vehicle was driving recorded by the tachograph,
• Other work entered as rest – e.g. travelling to the vehicle,
• Overlapping rest on records from another card or vehicle.

How DDDStart checks manual entries

Each manual entry is compared with the tachograph records and the neighbouring activities. Errors are marked in colour: red – when the entry contradicts the data or leaves a gap, orange – when it needs explanation. Quick day filters let you show only days with infringements, incorrect manual entries or other problems with one click.

Questions and answers

Updated: 12 October 2026 · Prepared by the DDDStart team (AMK VISION sp. z o.o.). For information only; this is not legal advice.