Prefettura Ufficio territoriale del governo di Firenze v MI and TB.

• Jurisdiction: European Union
• ECLI: ECLI:EU:C:2021:233
• Docket Number: C-870/19,C-871/19
• Date: 24 March 2021
• Celex Number: 62019CJ0870
• Court: Court of Justice (European Union)

Provisional text

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT (Tenth Chamber)

24 March 2021 (*)

(Reference for a preliminary ruling – Approximation of laws – Recording equipment in road transport – Regulation (EEC) No 3821/85 – Article 15(7) – Regulation (EC) No 561/2006 – Control proceedings – Administrative penalty – Failure to produce the record sheets for the tachograph relating to the current day and the previous 28 days – Single or multiple infringement)

In Joined Cases C‑870/19 and C‑871/19,

TWO REQUESTS for a preliminary ruling under Article 267 TFEU from the Corte suprema di cassazione (Supreme Court of Cassation, Italy), made by decisions of 19 September 2019, received at the Court on 26 November 2019, in the proceedings

Prefettura Ufficio territoriale del governo di Firenze

v

MI (C‑870/19),

TB (C‑871/19),

THE COURT (Tenth Chamber),

composed of M. Ilešič, President of the Chamber, E. Juhász (Rapporteur) and C. Lycourgos, Judges,

Advocate General: J. Richard de la Tour,

Registrar: A. Calot Escobar,

having regard to the written procedure,

after considering the observations submitted on behalf of:

– MI and TB, by G. Beghin, avvocato,

– the Italian Government, by G. Palmieri, acting as Agent, and by G. Greco, avvocato dello Stato,

– the Greek Government, by I. Kotsoni, S. Chala, E. Skandalou and K. Georgiadis, acting as Agents,

– the European Commission, by L. Malferrari and C. Vrignon, acting as Agents,

having decided, after hearing the Advocate General, to proceed to judgment without an Opinion,

gives the following

Judgment

1 These requests for a preliminary ruling concern the interpretation of Article 15(7) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 3821/85 of 20 December 1985 on recording equipment in road transport (OJ 1985 L 370, p. 8), as amended by Regulation (EC) No 561/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 March 2006 (OJ 2006 L 102, p. 1) (‘Regulation No 3821/85’).

2 The requests have been made in two sets of proceedings between the Prefettura Ufficio territoriale del governo di Firenze (Government representative’s office at the Florence Prefecture, Italy) (‘the Florence Prefecture’) and MI (Case C‑870/19) and TB (Case C‑871/19), respectively, two road transport drivers, concerning a number of administrative penalties imposed on them for infringements of the rules on compliance with driving times and rest periods.

Legal context

EU law

Regulation No 3821/85

3 Regulation No 3821/85 repealed and replaced Regulation (EEC) No 1463/70 of the Council of 20 July 1970 on the introduction of recording equipment in road transport (OJ, English Special Edition, Series I 1970(II), p. 482). Regulation No 3821/85 was itself repealed and replaced by Regulation (EU) No 165/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 February 2014 on tachographs in road transport, repealing Regulation No 3821/85 and amending Regulation No 561/2006 (OJ 2014 L 60, p. 1). Nevertheless, given the date of the events in the main proceedings, regard must be had to Regulation No 3821/85.

4 The third, seventh and eleventh recitals of Regulation No 3821/85 read as follows:

‘Whereas the use of recording equipment that may indicate the periods of time referred to in [Council] Regulation (EEC) No 3820/85 of 20 December 1985 on the harmonisation of certain social legislation relating to road transport [(OJ 1985 L 370, p. 1)] is intended to ensure effective checking on that social legislation;

…

Whereas automatic recording of other details of a vehicle's journey, such as speed and distance covered, will contribute significantly to road safety and will encourage sensible driving of the vehicle; whereas, consequently, it appears appropriate to provide for the equipment also to record those details;

…

Whereas, in order to achieve the aims hereinbefore mentioned of keeping a check on work and rest periods, it is necessary that employers and drivers be responsible for seeing that the equipment functions correctly and that they perform with due care the operations prescribed;

…’

5 Article 3(1) of that regulation provided:

‘Recording equipment shall be installed and used in vehicles registered in a Member State which are used for the carriage of passengers or goods by road, except the vehicles referred to in Article 3 of Regulation … No 561/2006 …’

6 Article 13 of that regulation provided:

‘The employer and drivers shall ensure the correct functioning and proper use of, on the one hand, the recording equipment and, on the other, the driver card where a driver is required to drive a vehicle fitted with recording equipment in conformity with Annex IB.’

7 Article 14(1) and (2) of that regulation provided as follows:

‘1. The employer shall issue a sufficient number of record sheets to drivers of vehicles fitted with recording equipment in conformity with Annex I, bearing in mind the fact that these sheets are personal in character, the length of the period of service and the possible obligation to replace sheets which are damaged, or have been taken by an authorised inspecting officer. The employer shall issue to drivers only sheets of an approved model suitable for use in the equipment installed in the vehicle.

Where the vehicle is fitted with recording equipment in conformity with Annex IB, the employer and the driver shall ensure that, taking into account the length of the period of service, the printing on request referred to in Annex IB can be carried out correctly in the event of an inspection.

2. The undertaking shall keep record sheets and printouts, whenever printouts have been made to comply with Article 15(1), in chronological order and in a legible form for at least a year after their use and shall give copies to the drivers concerned who request them. …’

8 Article 15 of Regulation No 3821/85 provided:

‘…

2. Drivers shall use record sheets or driver cards every day on which they are driving, starting from the moment they take over the vehicle. The record sheet or driver card shall not be withdrawn before the end of the daily working period unless its withdrawal is otherwise authorised. No record sheet or driver card may be used to cover a period longer than that for which it is intended.

…

7. (a) Where the driver drives a vehicle fitted with recording equipment in conformity with Annex I, the driver must be able to produce, whenever an inspecting officer so requests:

(i) the record sheets for the current week and those used by the driver in the previous 15 days;

(ii) the driver card, if he or she holds one, and

(iii) any manual record and printout made during the current week and the previous 15 days as required under this regulation and Regulation … No 561/2006.

However, after 1 January 2008, the time periods referred to under (i) and (iii) shall cover the current day and the previous 28 days.

(b) Where the driver drives a vehicle fitted with recording equipment in conformity with Annex IB, the driver must be able to produce, whenever an inspecting officer so requests:

(i) the driver card of which he or she is [the] holder;

(ii) any manual record and printout made during the current week and the previous 15 days as required under this regulation and Regulation … No 561/2006, and

(iii) the record sheets corresponding to the same period as the one referred to in the previous subparagraph during which he or she drove a vehicle fitted with recording equipment in conformity with Annex I.

However, after 1 January 2008, the time periods referred to under (ii) shall cover the current day and the previous 28 days.

(c) An authorised inspecting officer may check compliance with Regulation … No 561/2006 by analysis of the record sheets, of the displayed or printed data which have been recorded by the recording equipment or by the driver card or, failing this, by analysis of any other supporting document that justifies non-compliance with a provision, such as those laid down in Article 16(2) and (3).

…’

9 Article 19(1) of Regulation No 3821/85 provided:

‘Member States shall, in good time and after consulting the Commission, adopt such laws, regulations or administrative provisions as may be necessary for the implementation of this regulation.

Such measures shall cover, inter alia, the reorganisation of, procedure for, and means of carrying out, checks on compliance and the penalties to be imposed in case of breach.’

10 Point I, entitled ‘Definitions’, of Annex I to that regulation was worded as follows:

‘In this annex:

(a) Recording equipment means:

equipment intended for...