What does the tachograph driver card error Last card session was not closed correctly mean?

There are quite a few digital tachograph card events and faults that drivers ignore until they run into trouble. Let's look at one of the most dangerous of them - "Last card session was not closed correctly". Read on to find out what does it actually mean, why it might be so dangerous and how Tachogram solves the potential risks by timely alerts to drivers and managers.

What does it mean?

The explanation is straightforward - the digital tachograph attempted to write the data to the smart card and there was a technical problem of doing so. The card was extracted from the tachograph without the last data written and thus the data in the driver card might be incomplete and not represent the actual situation.

Why can the card error get you in serious trouble?

The reason why this error is so dangerous hides in the fact how data in the driver card is stored. The digital tachograph records all state changes to the driver card and as long as there is no new state written, it is considered that the previous state is still the active one. Imagine a situation: The driver has started to drive, and there is a card failure. That means that no new states can be written to the tachograph driver card for several hours or even days (yes, it might sound unrealistic - we've seen that by analysing our customer data). What happens during this time? The analysis software sees it as a continuous driving for several days. Imagine what would happen if you got into a roadside check in such situation? You would get a large fine for continuous driving for several days. A nightmare.

What to do about it?

As in other situations - you need to do a paper printout, write explanations and actual driving/rest times on the other side of the printout and carry them with you for 28 days. You should also do a vehicle unit data print out due to the fact that only the driver card was having issues and the correct data is saved in the vehicle unit memory. This will help you to prove that you haven't been driving for several days straight. If you notice that this error re-appears, we would recommend replacing your driver's card.

How Tachogram minimises the risks?

As soon as you do a card data upload to Tachogram we issue an e-mail alert to the driver and manager about the error, and instructions how to solve the situation. If your company uses any remote digital tachograph data download process you can get notified about the error automatically. With a Tachogram smart card reader you can do your own card downloads as often as you wish to minimise risks of breaking any tachograph compliance rules. You can purchase one in our online store.