What it means: an internal GNSS fault, the tachograph's own position tracking is failing.
Can you keep driving: yes, but log manually while it persists.
Deadline for repair: before the vehicle returns to base, or within one week if it can't.
What fault 82 means
Smart tachographs record the vehicle's position automatically at set points, using a built-in GNSS receiver. Fault 82 means that receiver itself has stopped working correctly. It's a hardware fault inside the unit, not a data-connection problem.
The difference with 96
Fault 82 is a genuine internal malfunction of the positioning hardware. Fault 96 is different in kind: it flags a GNSS anomaly, a mismatch that can indicate the signal is being interfered with, and control officers treat that as a possible manipulation indicator rather than a simple breakdown. Don't confuse the two when explaining a fault to a workshop or an officer.
Can you keep driving
In the event of the breakdown or faulty operation of a tachograph, the transport undertaking shall have it repaired by an approved fitter or workshop, as soon as circumstances permit. If the vehicle is unable to return to the transport undertaking's premises within a period of one week calculated from the day of the breakdown or of the discovery of defective operation, the repair shall be carried out en route.
Regulation (EU) No 165/2014, Article 37(1). Accessed 26 August 2026.
Fault 82 falls under the same general malfunction rule as faults 40 and 41. You can keep driving, provided you meet the manual-record and repair obligations below.
What to log right away
While the tachograph is unserviceable or malfunctioning, the driver shall mark data enabling him to be identified (name, driver card or driving licence number), including a signature, as well as the information for the various periods of time which are no longer recorded or printed out correctly by the tachograph: (a) on the record sheet or sheets, or (b) on a temporary sheet to be attached to the record sheet or to be kept together with the driver card.
Regulation (EU) No 165/2014, Article 37(2).
Since position data, not driving time, is what's affected here, your driving and rest periods themselves are still recorded correctly. What you log manually is the fact that position recording has failed, so there's a documented reason if a position gap shows up later.
Who has to fix it, and by when
Your transport undertaking is responsible for the repair, carried out by an approved fitter or workshop, with the same deadline that applies to any tachograph malfunction: as soon as circumstances allow, and within one week if the vehicle can't return to base. A GNSS receiver fault is a component-level repair, which an approved workshop can usually diagnose quickly.
What it costs
The regulation sets no price for repair, that's a workshop and national matter. What matters legally is meeting the deadline and keeping the manual record in the meantime.
Also read
Sources
- Regulation (EU) No 165/2014 on tachographs in road transport, Article 37, consolidated version. EUR-Lex
Legal text quoted verbatim from the consolidated English version published on EUR-Lex, accessed 26 August 2026. VDO does not publish an official fault-code glossary in English; the plain-language description above is our own, the legal citation is not.
Stuck? See where there is still room.
Drivers report what they see themselves. Parking full, traffic, hazard, roadworks. Open the app and stop driving alone.