DVSA tachograph rules
What does tachograph calibration cost?
Calibration is priced per vehicle, and the number depends on the tachograph generation, whether the unit needs a full recalibration or a two-yearly inspection, whether a data download and seal check are included, and whether you drive to a centre or a mobile technician comes to you. The rules themselves are fixed by gov.uk: digital and smart tachographs must be recalibrated every 2 years, analogue units inspected every 2 years and recalibrated every 6, and the work must be done by a vehicle manufacturer or an approved tachograph calibration centre. Tell us about your vehicles and approved centres will quote you directly.
Every 2 years
recalibration interval for digital and smart tachographs, per DVSA operator guidance
2 and 6 years
analogue tachographs must be inspected every 2 years and recalibrated every 6 years
90 and 28 days
operators must download vehicle unit data every 90 days and driver card data every 28 days
How it works
- Tell us the vehicles, the tachograph generation and whether you want mobile or centre work. Two minutes, no account.
- We pass your details to relevant approved tachograph centres near your operating centre, and to no one else.
- They contact you directly with a price per vehicle and available slots. Compare, choose, or walk away.
Tacho Calibration is a free introduction service operated by Ellul Solutions Ltd; we pass your details to relevant approved tachograph centres who quote you directly. We may receive a fee from providers; you pay nothing and are under no obligation. We are an independent site, not a calibration centre, and not affiliated with or endorsed by DVSA or the Department for Transport. Nothing here is transport law advice: the rules quoted come from DVSA guidance on gov.uk so you can check them against your own operation.
What drives a tachograph calibration quote, 2026
Last updated
Calibration is one of the few transport compliance jobs with a genuinely standard scope, which is why the price differences come from logistics rather than from the work itself. This table sets out what a centre is really charging for and the questions that turn a headline per vehicle rate into a comparable one.
This is a cost-driver table rather than a price table. Tachograph calibration is quoted per vehicle and varies with fleet volume, tachograph generation, whether a technician travels to you and how much vehicle downtime the slot involves, so a single published rate would not tell an operator what their own fleet should pay. The intervals, the approved centre requirement, the plaque and the download periods are quoted from DVSA guidance on gov.uk, read on 14 August 2026. Use the form above to get real quotes for your own vehicles.
| Cost driver | Why it moves the price | What to ask for in the quote |
|---|---|---|
| Fleet volume | A technician set up for a batch of vehicles in one visit is far more productive than one doing a single unit, so the per vehicle rate normally falls as the batch grows | A price per vehicle at your actual batch size, not the single vehicle rate |
| Tachograph generation | Analogue, digital, smart 1 and smart 2 units differ in the work involved and the equipment needed, and smart 2 units bring additional functionality that the centre has to be approved and equipped for | Confirmation the centre is equipped for the generation fitted to your vehicles |
| Recalibration or two-yearly inspection | Analogue tachographs are inspected every 2 years and recalibrated every 6, so an analogue fleet has two different jobs on two different cycles; digital and smart units are recalibrated every 2 years | Which job is being quoted, and what the plaque will show afterwards |
| Mobile visit or drive to the centre | A mobile technician saves you driver time and vehicle mileage but costs the centre travel. Which is cheaper depends entirely on your fleet size and distance | Both prices: mobile at your yard, and at the centre, so you can do the arithmetic on driver time |
| Download and seal checks | A calibration slot is a natural moment to pull the vehicle unit data and check seals, but it is not automatically part of the job | Whether a vehicle unit download and a seal integrity check are included or extra |
| Timing and downtime | Slots during the working week take a vehicle off the road. Evening, weekend and phased batches cost more to buy and less in lost running | The slot duration assumed per vehicle, and the out of hours uplift |
| Triggered recalibrations | Beyond the 2 year cycle, digital and smart tachographs must be recalibrated after any repair, if the vehicle registration number changes, if UTC is out by more than 20 minutes, or after an alteration to tyre circumference or the characteristic coefficient | A rate for unplanned single vehicle recalibrations, agreed before you need one |
- DVSA guidance states that all tachographs used for recording drivers' hours, whether analogue, digital or smart, must be properly installed, calibrated and sealed, and that this must be performed by a vehicle manufacturer or an approved tachograph calibration centre.
- Digital and smart tachographs must be recalibrated every 2 years, after any repair, if the vehicle registration number changes, if UTC is out by more than 20 minutes, or after an alteration to the circumference of the tyres or characteristic coefficient (gov.uk).
- Analogue tachographs must be inspected every 2 years and recalibrated every 6 years (gov.uk).
- Operators must download data from the vehicle unit every 90 days and from driver cards every 28 days, and analyse it to ensure the rules have been complied with (gov.uk).
Cite this page
“What drives a tachograph calibration quote, 2026”, Tacho Calibration, https://tachocalibration.co.uk/ (updated 2026-08-14). This is a cost-driver table rather than a price table. Tachograph calibration is quoted per vehicle and varies with fleet volume, tachograph generation, whether a technician travels to you and how much vehicle downtime the slot involves, so a single published rate would not tell an operator what their own fleet should pay. The intervals, the approved centre requirement, the plaque and the download periods are quoted from DVSA guidance on gov.uk, read on 14 August 2026. Use the form above to get real quotes for your own vehicles.
The detail
Sourced, dated, kept current.
- Tachograph calibration cost: what moves the price per vehicle
Why tachograph calibration quotes differ between centres: fleet volume, tachograph generation, mobile versus centre work, downloads, seals and slot timing.
- Tachograph calibration rules: the 2 year and 6 year intervals
What DVSA guidance says about tachograph calibration: 2 year recalibration for digital and smart units, 2 year inspection and 6 year recalibration for analogue.
- Approved tachograph centres: what they are and how to choose
Only a manufacturer or an approved tachograph calibration centre may calibrate and seal a tachograph. What approval means and what to check before booking.
- Tachograph download rules: 90 days, 28 days and the records
How often operators must download vehicle unit and driver card data, why calibration visits are a good moment to do it, and what records to keep.
Straight answers
How much does tachograph calibration cost?
There is no published standard price. Calibration is quoted per vehicle and the main levers are how many vehicles are done in one visit, the tachograph generation fitted, whether a mobile technician comes to your yard or you drive to a centre, whether a data download and seal check are included, and the slot timing. Ask for the rate at your real batch size.
How often does a tachograph need to be calibrated?
Digital and smart tachographs must be recalibrated every 2 years, and also after any repair, if the vehicle registration number changes, if UTC is out by more than 20 minutes, or after an alteration to the circumference of the tyres or characteristic coefficient. Analogue tachographs must be inspected every 2 years and recalibrated every 6 years.
Who is allowed to calibrate a tachograph?
DVSA guidance states that installing, calibrating and sealing a tachograph must be performed either by a vehicle manufacturer or an approved tachograph calibration centre. An installation plaque must be fixed to or near the tachograph and the centre issues a certificate showing details of any inspection conducted.
Where do I find the calibration due date?
On the installation plaque. gov.uk states that inspection and recalibration dates are shown on the plaque and updated by calibration centres, and that operators must ensure the requirements are complied with before a new or used vehicle goes into service.
Do vans need a tachograph?
It depends on weight and journey type. gov.uk states that goods vehicles over 2.5 tonnes and under 3.5 tonnes used only in the UK do not have to have a tachograph fitted, and that on or after 1 July 2026 a full smart 2 tachograph must be fitted into goods vehicles over 2.5 tonnes used for international journeys for hire and reward. Check the current guidance for your own operation.
Is this quote service really free?
Yes, free to you, with no obligation to accept any quote. We pass your details only to relevant approved tachograph centres, who quote you directly; we may receive a fee from those providers, which is how the service is funded.