The Traffic Commissioners have today (4 November 2024) published guidance on independent compliance audits and, importantly, what an acceptable audit should cover.

Independent auditing is an important management tool for an operator to use to assess their compliance performance and highlight any areas of weakness or risk in their systems and arrangements. It is for the operator to choose who they engage to conduct an audit; however, they must satisfy themselves that the audit is sufficient (particularly if the audit is required by the Traffic Commissioner through an undertaking attached to the Operator’s Licence), as inadequate audits may not be accepted by the Traffic Commissioner.

The areas an audit should cover include:

• The auditor’s qualifications
• Sample sizes in relation to the checking of vehicles/trailers and records
• Description of operator’s business
• Management structure
• Operating centre
• Transport manager
• Driver management
• Drivers' hours, working time and tachographs
• Vehicle maintenance
• Dangerous goods (HGV only)
• PSV112 incident reporting (PSV only)

The new guidance mirrors the criteria against which operators are already assessed during DVSA investigations.

We suggest that, when arranging an audit, operators request details of the auditor’s qualifications as well as a copy of the audit framework to satisfy themselves that the audit does cover the areas expected of an acceptable audit.

You can read the full guidance here: Operator Compliance Audits - GOV.UK