Road Traffic Acts
Construction and Use of Vehicles Regulations

When properly created and executed, maintenance systems provide clear evidence that adequate levels of maintenance are carried out in a fleet and single vehicle situations. It is often the case that after road traffic accidents and roadside inspections enforcement officers will call to inspect the maintenance systems that are in place.
The starting point is to examine the premises and equipment in use if the maintenance is carried out in-house. This must be of adequate standard, health and safety standards must be met. The maintenance equipment must be capable of being used to provide proper maintenance and be part of an appropriate maintenance system for the vehicles owned by the road transport operator.  

In cases where the maintenance is carried out under contract or agreement with a provider who is not a direct employee of the transport undertaking, the contract documents or any written material describing the maintenance to be carried out on the vehicles, the inspection and service frequencies and the professional qualifications of the engineers employed to carry out such maintenance will be inspected.

Inspectors may also examine the in-house documents concerning the maintenance carried out, i.e. inspection, maintenance schedules, actual compliance with these schedules, parts used in maintenance, the quality of maintenance carried out may also be assessed through individual vehicle examination. Individual vehicle records will also be checked, a vehicle’s history, e.g. has a vehicle ever failed a Road Worthiness Test?

Operators should be careful not to send vehicles in for tests if they know that the vehicles are not going to pass. Some operators send vehicles to the test centre to “see what’s wrong with it” or to “find out what needs fixed” in order to pass the road worthiness test. In both circumstances, the operator is indicating that they do not know the roadworthiness state of the vehicle and this is an offence! Road traffic Acts and the Construction and Use of Vehicles Regulations specifically require the owner of a vehicle to only use the vehicle if it is roadworthy, the owner should carry out, or caused to be carried out, such maintenance and inspections before the vehicle is allowed on the public roads.