HGV Operators Maintenance Investigations

DVSA officers may have a need to attend your operator's centres or Premises to undertake a maintenance audit or full investigation. The content will take you through options that may be taken by the authorities to ensure you are operating within the licence. We will give a brief overview of what the investigations will include, and some ideas of how some operators may fail these inspections when some records are overlooked.

Operator Legal Entity

One of the first questions that may be looked at will be is the legal entity of your business - Is correct, and does it match your operator's licence? Legal entities include limited companies, charities, voluntary groups, partnerships, public authorities, or sole traders. The operator must hold the licence under the correct legal entity and any changes to the legal entity must be notified to the Traffic Commissioner within 28 days.

How do I change or update my legal entity, your business

The Assessment

Your legal entity details and Directors listed on Vehicle Operator Licensing system (VOL) should match the records on the Companies House - Seach Register or Sign In to your account. In the case of a Sole trader or Partnership entities, enquiries should be made with the operator to confirm that the legal entity is correct and up to date.

What is Satisfactory – if all the following apply;

• The legal entity registered at Companies House is as stated on VOL.
• There is no mismatch of company directors or partners.
• The sole trader or partnership is as stated on VOL.

Mostly Satisfactory – But updates required immediately;

• Current directors or partners are correct but previous director/s or partners have not been removed from VOL

Unsatisfactory;

• Current directors or partners have not been added to the licence.

Immediately Report to Office of Transport Commissioners (OTC)

• The legal entity is incorrect.

If an investigation identifies the legal entity is incorrect, the examiner must contact OTC to confirm if the operation can continue. The operator must be made aware they are operating illegally. This may mean that you may have to close your business. The investigation should continue, and all the facts reported to OTC on completion unless otherwise notified.

Condition of vehicles examined at the fleet check

The DSVA and investigators are required to carry out where possible unannounced inspection of operator’s vehicles and trailers, where applicable trailers will be classed as vehicles. The purpose of a fleet check is to be established whether the operator’s maintenance system is effective in ensuring vehicles are operated in a roadworthy condition. Enough vehicles need to be inspected to establish the general condition of the licensed operators fleet.

The scope of the investigation may be limited to the fleet of vehicles, trailers operating from one centre or a number of operating centres listed on the same licence, or vehicle fleets across multiple licences.

Vehicle inspections should be as detailed as possible (subject to the available inspection facilities). Where possible the inspection should cover vehicles and trailers of a range of different types, of various ages, and at different stages in their inspection and annual test cycle. Below is a guide to the minimum numbers of vehicles to inspect for various fleet sizes in the scope of an investigation.

Fleet size (in possession)	Minimum number to inspections
1 – 5	1 to 3
6 – 20	3 to 5
21 – 100	5 to 10
>100	10 to 5% (whichever is greater)

If serious defects are found during the fleet inspection the vehicle examiner must be satisfied that the threat to road safety has been mitigated by the extent of the fleet check carried out.

Unavailable vehicles

If vehicles are unavailable for an unannounced inspection, a short-notice appointment should be made and where possible full inspection facilities used.

Out of use vehicles

Generally, vehicles undergoing repair, and those, which are partially dismantled awaiting spare parts, should not be subject to inspection or prohibition. However, where it is clear that the extent of repair work is limited or is of a token nature only, and the vehicle’s general appearance suggests it was last used on a road in a dangerous condition, an inspection may be carried out and prohibition action taken for all dangerous defects which existed prior to repair.

The fact that the vehicle was off the road and under repair should be made clear in the Maintenance Investigation Visit Report (MIVR) and noted on the prohibition. This also applies to any vehicle, which the operator claims have been withdrawn from use pending disposal.

Out of scope vehicle types

Vehicles, which are out of the scope of operator licensing (for example light goods, agricultural and/or small passenger-carrying vehicles) but are controlled by the operator, may also be inspected where there is cause for concern, and the results reported to the traffic commissioner. These vehicles are not specified against the operator licence but for recording purposes, all notices (clear or prohibition) should be recorded against the operator licence number.

Any prohibition issued to a vehicle in the ‘out of use’ or ‘out of scope’ categories should be noted in question 10a of the MIVR report. Vehicles that are out of scope will not be considered for the purposes of the operator compliance risk score.

Fleet Assessment

The fleet check table must show all vehicles and trailers inspected at the fleet check. The vehicle inspection must be recorded against the most serious action level on the table making it clear whether the prohibition was S marked.

Prohibitions issued at the fleet check will be assessed.

1. No Applies - If no vehicles examined: (explanation required on the MIVR), but only If no vehicles or trailers types were inspected during the investigation.
2. No Applies - No vehicles inspected: - Vehicles out of scope.
3. No Applies - If Vehicle Inspected were out of scope. if the only vehicle/s that were out of scope.
4. No Applies - if no prohibitions were issued at the fleet check.
5. Yes - Applies - if any prohibition was issued at the fleet check, including X-endorsed prohibitions and those for out-of-scope vehicles.

Operating Centre

The operating centre is where authorised vehicles are normally kept when not in use. When applying for an operator’s licence, the applicant gives the address of the proposed centre(s) and information about the numbers of trailers and vehicles that will be kept there.

The operator needs to show that the operating centre;

• Is the operating centre large enough for the authorised fleet of vehicles and trailers?
• Does the centre have safe access?
• Is the centre in an environmentally acceptable location?

Current operating centres need to be checked against authorised operating centres recorded on the vehicle operator licensing system (VOL), including a check of licence undertakings and conditions which may be relevant to the individual sites. Any breach of undertakings or conditions is assessed in Q12.

The Assessment

What is Satisfactory

• The operating centres on the licence are clearly being used as authorised

Mostly satisfactory

• The operator has not updated VOL for any operating centres that are no longer used

Report to Office of Transport Commissioners (OTC)

• Is there evidence of unauthorised operating centre/s in use

Are the parking arrangements adequate?

The operating centre is where authorised vehicles are normally kept when not in use. When applying for an operator’s licence, the applicant gives the address of the proposed centre(s) and information about the numbers of trailers and vehicles that will be kept there.

The operator needs to show that the operating centre;

• Are large enough for the authorised fleet of vehicles and trailers
• Has safe access and egress for the types of vehicles and trailers operated from that centre

Current operating centre(s) need to be checked against authorised operating centre(s) recorded on the vehicle operator licensing system (VOL) and the vehicles authorised to be parked at that centre.

For third-party operating centres that are shared by several operators, the assessment should include checking that the operator has adequate parking arrangement in place with the owner of the premises or land.

The Assessment

What is Satisfactory

• Parking arrangements are clearly adequate for the authorised fleet
• there is evidence that adequate agreements are in place for third-party sites

Mostly satisfactory

• No formal agreement is in place for a third-party site/s, but the parking facility appears adequate

Unsatisfactory – Arrangements are inadequate if any of the following:

• There is evidence of insufficient parking for the authorised fleet
• There is a dispute over parking rights at a third-party site
• There is clear evidence of unsafe access or egress from the operating centre

Inspection and maintenance records

Record sampling

Record sampling must be representative of the fleet of vehicles included within the scope of the maintenance investigation, which may involve checking records from various operating centres.

The scope of the investigation may be limited to a fleet operating from one centre or could involve several fleets from multiple centres operated on the same licence, or fleets from across multiple licences.

Where possible, all files should be checked for encounters, which have resulted in a prohibition notice and are included in the scope of the prohibition assessment (see Q10a). Detailed analysis of these records should be carried out to help establish the root cause of the prohibition defect/s.

The sample should also include records covering any different types of maintenance provider used by the operator and, where applicable, a range of vehicle or trailer types for example:

• Manufacturers’ approved workshops
• Independent maintenance providers
• Mobile maintenance
• In-house workshops
• Articulated or rigid vehicles
• Buses or coaches
• Semi or drawbar trailers

Detailed record analysis should be shown using the safety inspection period calculator and analysis tool (SIPCAT), which will help to identify trends, strengths, or weaknesses within the operator’s maintenance system.

If significant shortcomings are apparent, the sample size should be increased to establish whether there is a systemic issue or these are just isolated problems.

Below is a guide to the minimum numbers of vehicle files to sample depending on the size of the fleet in the scope of an investigation. A ‘file’ means all relevant maintenance documents for the vehicle or trailer covering up to 15 months history;

Fleet size (in possession)	Minimum file sample guide
1 – 5	1 to 3
6 – 20	3 to 5
21 – 100	5 to 10
>100	10 to 5% (whichever is greater)

 

Are your records suitable?

Inspection and maintenance records should be assessed against the recommendations in the Guide to Maintaining Roadworthiness (GTMR)

The safety inspection record must include:

• Name of owner/operator
• Date of inspection
• Vehicle identity (registration mark/trailer number)
• Make and model
• Odometer (mileage recorder) reading, if appropriate
• A list of all the manual items to be inspected
• An indication of the condition of each item inspected
• Details of any defects
• Name of inspector
• Full details of any repair work and who did it
• A signed declaration that any defects have been repaired satisfactorily and the vehicle is now in a safe roadworthy condition
• All details should be legible

Additional requirements for electronic systems:

• hard copies of records should be available so that they can be produced on request
• the system must be tamper-proof (e.g., records cannot be changed at a later date)
• it must be clear what has been checked and by whom
• there must be a clear end-to-end audit trail
• data files should cover all maintenance records for the fleet
• the system should meet data protection requirements (including the general data protection regulation)
• there should be a data backup and disaster recovery system

Assessment

What is Satisfactory

• Records fully meet the recommendations in the GTMR

Mostly satisfactory

• Records mostly meet the recommendations in GTMR but with minor omissions, for example, missing model or incorrect inspection manual reference number

Unsatisfactory - if any of the following:

• Records have a major omission
• Records clearly do not meet the GTMR recommendations

Report to OTC

• No records are available

Are your records properly completed and available;

Completion of inspection and maintenance records should be assessed against the recommendations in GTMR. Safety inspections must include those items covered by the appropriate statutory annual test. Any work carried out because of safety inspections must be recorded. Records of safety inspections must be kept for at least 15 months for all vehicles, including vehicles that have been removed from the operator licence. A safety inspection report must be fully completed for each safety inspection for both vehicles and trailers. If the safety inspection report is to be stored electronically, a paper version does not need to be kept.

Important features of a computerised system:

• Hard copies of records should be available so that they can be produced on request
• The system must be tamper-proof (e.g., records cannot be changed at a later date)
• It must be clear what is been checked and by whom
• There must be a complete audit trail
• Data files should cover all maintenance records for the fleet
• The system should meet data protection requirements (including the general data protection regulation)
• There should be a data backup and disaster recovery system

The system can include

• Fully electronic inspection records
• A forward planning system
• Drivers’ walkaround checks and defect reporting
• A performance dashboard

Braking performance

As per the annual test, every safety inspection must assess the braking performance of the vehicle or trailer. GTMR advises on four methods of assessing braking performance at a safety inspection:

1. Roller brake test (laden where possible)
2. Decelerometer (rigid vehicles)
3. Electronic braking performance monitoring system (EBPMS) for trailers
4. Road test with brake temperature measurement.

The safety inspection must record how the braking performance was assessed. However, a road test to check the braking performance for all planned safety inspections will usually be inadequate. It is therefore normally expected that the vehicle or trailer should complete at least three successful brake efficiency tests spread throughout the year in addition to the annual MOT test.

The Assessment

Satisfactory

• There is a full set of correctly completed inspection records, which meets the recommendations in GTMR

Mostly satisfactory

• Records are generally fully completed but some minor issues are found, for example missing mileage or clerical errors

Unsatisfactory - if any of the following:

• There are missing inspection record/s
• There are incorrectly completed record/s
• There are inadequate inspection procedures

Report to OTC 

• There is clear evidence of falsification or dishonesty

 

Source: DVSA, Updated: 1 February 2021