Operator Licence Compliance Audit

Positive solutions and advice, roadworthiness and traffic compliance and additional driver training.

Operator Licence required for light goods vehicles, vans, cars and trailers — act now

Ensure safety and compliance at all times.

All new and existing Operators holding a licence should always remember that one of the most important aspects of being a “Goods Vehicle Operator” is to ensure safety and compliance at all times.

This involves keeping your drivers updated and aware of the rules and regulations. It is up to you, the Operator and your nominated Transport Manager, to be alert to this requirement; ask any of the Traffic Commissioners and they will inform you that “ignorance is not an acceptable excuse!“

If you need help for when things have gone wrong, or if you feel your operation would benefit from a Compliance service, then we can tailor an ideal package that will suit your operation and budget—working alongside your Transport Management, Operations Logistics and Distribution teams.

Please get in touch ASAP to ensure your Operator Licence is running legally and protected both now and for the future.

We provide consultancy services, assistance, training workshops and advice for:

Operator Licensing
Operator Compliance Audits
Legislation and Guidance
Drivers Hours (Domestic & EEC)
Tachograph Analysis—Manual Disc and Digital
Using Digital Tachographs (For Drivers)
Tachograph Regulations
Drivers’ Hours Legislation
Drivers’ CPC
Maintenance Planning
Vehicle inspection exit checks-random or a complete fleet
Maintaining Maintenance Records & OCRS Score

Drivers’ Daily Walk-Round Checks
London Low Emission Zone
Efficient Driver and Vehicle Scheduling
Driving Licence Check
Driver Handbooks
Driver Assessments
Public Inquiries (Legal representation by nominated reputable firms we work with directly)
DVSA Site Visits
DVSA Inspections
Maintaining Operator Standards
Drivers’ Defect Reporting
Including FORS Bronze/Silver standard awareness

For further information please contact our team for an informal discussion. Call 01530 440 533 or +44 (0)7456 855 017.

Case study

A haulier’s vehicle had been stopped at the DVSA spot check point. The driver of the vehicle had driven 20 minutes over the allowed limit when legally required to have a break after 4.5 hours of driving.

Consequence

As a result of this negligence:

The haulier’s reputation under scrutiny from the customer for the goods not being delivered on time.
The haulier had to send another vehicle out to pick up the load and deliver to the customer, putting a strain on the value and business and making a loss on the load.
The driver was given a fine for failing to comply with driver’s hours prohibition rule.
The vehicle was immediately immobilised.
The Operator was fined and faced an Operator Licence On-Site Audit of all paperwork and operation procedures from a DVSA officer, leading to a hearing at a P.I. (Public Inquiry).

Our action

We recruited a local Transport Manager from our team within 24 hours of been contacted by the haulier and went through in detail with them:

What happened?
Why was the driver stopped?
What the effects are of this stop on the business in the short and long-term.
Carried out a 1–2 day audit, checking through the haulier’s paperwork and full operation to find the cracks.
We showed the haulier how to put right the identified issues with preventative action to not make the same mistakes again!
Provided documentation to show the haulier and the DVSA inspection officer of our audit findings, focussing on the Operator Licence undertakings and ensuring these are adhered too.

Summary

The haulier was not aware that the driver was over his hours, needing a break when they were stopped.

The business was not previously aware of the amount of compliance that was required.
The haulier advised us that if they had not engaged our services, they would have most likely faced a bigger fine, along with a strong possibility of losing their Operator Licence and their whole business.
Attending the public enquiry with all the evidence of what was wrong and how they had put things right helped their case and they didn’t lose their ability to operate.
The haulier was advised they will now be on the watch list for the future and the traffic officers are mostly likely to spot check them again until the ORCS score returns to green and they gain some confidence back with the haulier.

They will be forever grateful to our team for the services we provided them. We are proud to help the Haulage industry keep compliant!

Final thought

One vehicle was stopped on the roadside for a simple spot check and caused all this hard work.

For peace of mind, use our services and Transport Managers to ensure you are fully complaint, while you sit back and concentrate on the day to day running of the business and keeping your customers happy.