The last day on which European control authorities refrained from penalising industrial vehicles operating in international transport without the second-generation smart digital tachograph (identified by the code G2V2) was 28 February 2025. From 1 March onwards, those failing to comply face severe penalties.
Reports have already surfaced of the first case in Italy. Local newspapers in Bari state that on 1 March, the city’s local police stopped a Bulgarian articulated lorry lacking the second-generation smart tachograph, issuing an 866-euro fine. Additionally, the driver's licence was suspended for a period ranging from fifteen days to three months, depending on the ruling of the judicial authority.
It should be noted that the requirement, which formally came into effect on 1 January 2025, applies from that date to industrial vehicles with a total mass exceeding 3.5 tonnes that previously did not have a first-generation digital tachograph (i.e., those equipped with an analogue or non-smart version). Vehicles already fitted with the first-generation digital tachograph must upgrade to the second-generation version by 28 August 2025, with no grace period currently in place. The regulation applies exclusively to international road transport, meaning that lorries operating solely within national borders are not required to upgrade their tachographs.
