Employment contract for a driver

A driver's employment depends on a licence the employer does not control, is governed by hours rules that carry criminal penalties, and takes place in a vehicle the employer insures and the driver may damage. The contract has to make the licence and the checks a condition of the role, carry the drivers' hours and working time rules, allocate fines, penalties and damage within the deductions law, say what happens if the licence is lost, and set pay for time on the road. Drafting for the employer, I deliver the contract in five working days for a fixed £595, written so that it can be reused for everyone in the grade.

Who this is for

Employers in England and Wales with employed drivers: delivery and logistics companies, trades with vans, chauffeur and executive car businesses, and any business whose staff drive its vehicles as their job.

What matters in a driver's contract

The licence, checks and the conditions of the role

The contract should make holding a valid licence for the vehicle class, with no more than a stated number of penalty points, a condition of employment, require the employee to produce the licence for checking at stated intervals and to consent to DVLA checks, to report immediately any conviction, points, disqualification or medical condition affecting driving, and to hold any driver qualification card or certificate the vehicle requires; the employer's own right to work checks under the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 and the written particulars under section 1 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 apply as for any employee.

Drivers' hours, tachographs and the working time rules for mobile workers

Drivers of goods vehicles above the relevant weight are subject to the drivers' hours rules under the Transport Act 1968 and the retained EU rules, with tachograph records, daily and weekly limits and rest periods, and to the Road Transport (Working Time) Regulations 2005, which limit mobile workers' working time with no individual opt-out; drivers of lighter vehicles are covered by the Working Time Regulations 1998 and domestic rules; the contract should state which regime applies, require compliance and accurate records, make falsification of records gross misconduct, and provide for the employer's monitoring, because the employer is liable for the driver's hours offences as well as the driver.

Vehicles, insurance and the employer's duties

The contract should state that the employee drives the employer's vehicles under its insurance, which the employer must hold for business use under section 143 of the Road Traffic Act 1988, require daily vehicle checks and defect reporting, prohibit unauthorised passengers and private use unless the contract or a car policy permits it, require compliance with the employer's driving for work policy, and carry the employer's duties under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 for driving as work (routes, schedules and fatigue), with any private use of a vehicle treated as a benefit the accountants report.

Fines, penalties and damage

Fixed penalties, parking charges and speeding fines incurred by the driver are the driver's, and the contract should say that the employer will identify the driver to the authorities as the law requires and may recover fines it has paid, while damage to the vehicle caused by the employee's negligence may be recovered only with a contractual term or written consent under section 13 of the Employment Rights Act 1996, limited to a stated excess per incident and never below the minimum wage; a scheme that deducts the full cost of every scratch is unlawful and the contract should set a proportionate excess.

Loss of the licence and what follows

If the employee loses their licence through disqualification, points or a medical condition, the contract should provide the employer's options: suspension without pay for a stated period, redeployment to non-driving duties where available, and dismissal where the employee can no longer perform the role, with a fair process because the dismissal is for some other substantial reason or capability rather than automatic; the contract should say that the employee's failure to report a disqualification is gross misconduct, and the employer should follow the process the Employment Rights Act 1996 and the Acas code require whatever the clause says.

Pay, routes and the particulars

The contract should state the pay (hourly, daily or salaried, meeting the National Minimum Wage Act 1998 rate for all working time including loading, waiting and checks, which the National Minimum Wage Regulations 2015 treat as working time), overnight allowances, the employer's right to allocate routes and vary start times on notice, breaks, the place of work as the depot with various places of work for driving, and the usual terms: probation and notice with section 86 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 as the floor, the disciplinary and grievance procedures, sick pay, pension auto-enrolment under the Pensions Act 2008, holiday, drugs and alcohol testing under a policy, and the use of telematics and cameras under the privacy notice.

What it costs

Employment contract, £595. One template you can reuse for a grade of staff. Five working days.

Staff handbook and core policies, £995. Five working days.

Buying online forms the engagement on payment. The scope is what the employment contracts and handbooks page describes, you accept the Terms of Service at checkout, and I email you within four working hours to get started. If you would rather ask something first, email me.

What you get

• A bespoke contract drafted for how you employ people
• Restrictive covenants drafted at a scope a court will uphold
• Confidentiality and intellectual property provisions that put ownership where it belongs
• The statutory particulars, so the document does the job section 1 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 requires it to do
• Flexibility clauses where you genuinely need them, drafted to survive challenge
• Core policies: disciplinary, grievance, sickness absence, equal opportunities, data protection and, increasingly, AI use
• One round of amendments

What is not included

• Acting for employees
• Employment tribunal representation
• Payroll, pensions auto-enrolment and tax
• Immigration and sponsor licence work
• Day to day HR handling, disciplinaries, grievances and redundancy processes

Questions I am often asked

Our driver has been disqualified for twelve months. Can we dismiss?

Potentially, for some other substantial reason, after considering suspension or redeployment and following a fair process. The contract provides the options and makes failure to report a disqualification gross misconduct.

Can we deduct the cost of damage to the van from the driver's pay?

For damage caused by the driver's negligence, with written consent, limited to a stated excess and never below the minimum wage. The contract sets the excess; the full cost of every incident is not recoverable.

Do the working time rules apply to our van drivers?

The drivers' hours and mobile worker rules apply to goods vehicles above the relevant weight; lighter vehicles fall under the general working time rules and the domestic rules. The contract states which applies and requires compliance.

Related guidance and services

• Employment contracts and handbooks, £595, the service this page describes
• Consultancy and contractor agreements, £595
• Settlement agreements for employers, £795
• Contractor agreement for a delivery driver
• Employment contract with a company car

This page is general guidance for businesses in England and Wales, not advice on your own circumstances. Last reviewed: October 2026. Email geoffrey@caesar.co.uk.