Serious vehicle maintenance issues identified 3 months after MOT maintenance arrangements
Recent DVSA data has uncovered a concerning link between the time passed following an annual test (MOT) and vehicles being issued a roadworthiness prohibition.
Commercial vehicles are issued 10 times more prohibitions 3 months after their MOT
This is a damning statement from DVSA and we would remind operators that they have a responsibility to ensure roadworthiness standards of all vehicles are being maintained throughout the year.
Driver’s checks
The same DVSA data has shown that more than 60% of HGV prohibition defects are the type, which could have been reported by the driver had they carried out a thorough walkaround check before beginning their journey or noticed the defect while the vehicle was in service.
Both operators and drivers are responsible for making sure their vehicles are in good working order when they leave their base of operations.
Being on top of your game.
You must keep your vehicles safe and in good condition at all times. You will have to keep records of all safety inspections and maintenance that you or your maintenance contractor do for a minimum period of 15 months.
A safety inspection can be a freestanding inspection of just those items affecting road safety and certain environmental issues. Alternatively, it can be part of a more comprehensive inspection that, in addition, takes into account items relating to the vehicle’s work, performance and economic operation.
Regular safety inspections are essential to an effective roadworthiness maintenance system. Although a part of the overall vehicle maintenance plan, the inspections should ideally be undertaken as a separate, albeit often sequential, operation to routine servicing and repair.
This provides the maintenance programme with the flexibility to intensify or otherwise change frequency of inspections. It also allows the introduction of ad-hoc inspections, should they be required, without affecting frequency of servicing and other routine work (eg when the operating conditions call for checks that are more regular or when first use inspections are required).
In addition, freestanding inspection reports can be produced which provide the operator with the means of determining not only the roadworthiness of individual vehicles in service but also the overall effectiveness of their vehicle maintenance system, thus enabling the instigation of any changes that may be necessary
Carrying out your own inspections and maintenance
If you carry out your own safety inspections and maintenance, you must keep records that include:
Walkaround checks
You must make sure your drivers carry out a ‘walkaround check’ before driving a vehicle for the first time each day.
Using a maintenance provider
If you do not do this work yourself, you must provide the traffic commissioner with a copy of a contract with a maintenance provider. You are still responsible for the condition of your vehicles and trailers, even if they are maintained for you by someone else.
Care must be taken to ensure that the facilities used by the contractor are adequate and that the staff are competent. The list of facilities can be used to check a contractor. You should also ascertain that the contractor is in possession of an inspection manual and has suitable inspection sheets.
Drawing up a contract
It is essential to have a written contract that sets out precise details of vehicles covered and frequency and type of check, along with a repair policy. Such a contract must be kept on the operator’s maintenance file and produced on request. You must also make sure the maintenance provider details are up-to-date on the Vehicle Operator Licensing system (VOL).
An example of a Maintenance Agreement can be downloaded here.
Planning a safety inspection programme
Safety inspections must be planned in advance. Vehicles that are subject to a statutory annual test may have their year’s programme planned around the anticipated test date to avoid duplication of work associated with the test, such as cleaning and major servicing. An electronic scheduling system can be used to effectively plan maintenance activities for the fleet. Alternatively, a simple method of drawing up a programme is to use a year planner or flow chart.
Below is an example of a simple (but effective) flow chart
Electronic vehicle maintenance management and storage systems often incorporate a dynamic electronic planning feature, which automatically schedules the next inspection. The information should be kept in the simplest form possible and displayed prominently. This will serve as a reminder of programmed inspections or of any changes that have been necessary.
All vehicles subject to programmed attention should be included. Ideally, planning systems should set safety inspection dates at least six months in advance. Vehicles’ test dates should be included, as should servicing and other ancillary equipment or calibration dates, eg tachograph, lifting equipment, etc.
Any planning system should be updated regularly, indicating the progress of the programme and recording any extra work carried out. Vehicles that have been taken off the operator’s licence – or other vehicles temporarily off-road – should have their period of non-use identified, and a note should be made when vehicles have been disposed of.
The planning system may be used to record other items in the vehicle maintenance programme, such as servicing, unscheduled work and refurbishing. Each activity should be clearly identified
Further Reading
Read the guidance to find out how to keep your vehicle in a roadworthy condition.
There are also specific roadworthiness checks for recovery vehicles and for horseboxes and trailers.
Source – Traffic Commissioners
