Vehicle Roadworthiness: Why It Matters and How to Stay on Top of It

Every vehicle that leaves your depot has to be safe and roadworthy, every time. It sounds obvious, yet it remains one of the most common gaps in fleet compliance.

This month, Driving for Better Business (DfBB), the National Highways programme that helps organisations manage work-related road risk, has made vehicle roadworthiness its Fleet Safety Focus. With winter approaching, it is also supporting the National Highways T.R.I.P. campaign, which encourages drivers to check their vehicles before setting off to cut breakdowns and keep journeys safe.

Here is what operators and transport managers need to know, and how to turn good intentions into a routine you can evidence.

Responsibility is shared: driver and operator

The legal position is clear: a vehicle must be safe and roadworthy whenever it is used. Crucially, that duty does not rest with the driver alone. As the DVSA’s Guide to maintaining roadworthiness sets out, the driver and the operator are jointly responsible.

Health and safety law adds a further layer. Employers must assess the risks their work activity creates for anyone who might be affected and take sensible steps to control them. For vehicles, the Health and Safety Executive’s expectation is that they are fit for the job they are used for and kept in a safe, road-ready condition. DfBB covers this in more depth in its legal update on vehicle roadworthiness.

The problem is real

DfBB points to research suggesting that nearly three in ten vans fail their MOT at the first attempt, often on basics such as lights, tyres, suspension and brakes. If those items are not being looked at before a scheduled test, it raises a fair question about how often they are checked day to day.

Roadside enforcement tells a similar story. A joint piece from TyreSafe and DfBB reports that recent multi-agency checks found too many operators overlooking routine maintenance, load security and daily safety checks. Their message is that roadworthiness is not optional, and that the consequences are legal, financial and human.

Five steps to a roadworthiness routine you can prove

DfBB’s advice comes down to prevention: build checks into daily work rather than reacting after a failure. In practice, that means:

1. Have a written roadworthiness policy. Set out who checks what, when, and what happens when a defect is found. DfBB offers a free driving for work policy builder to help.
2. Make sure everyone knows their role. Drivers, supervisors, workshop staff and managers should all understand their part, not just the person holding the keys.
3. Insist on competent pre-use checks. A daily walkaround should cover the essentials, including tyres, lights, brakes, mirrors, fluids, bodywork and load security, every time.
4. Record defects, ideally digitally. Every reported issue should be logged and followed through to repair, leaving a clear audit trail.
5. Be willing to challenge. If checks look rushed or are not being done, ask questions. A culture where it is normal to check is a culture where it is normal to be safe.

Planned maintenance and good use of data complete the picture. DfBB explores this further in Build a Preventative Strategy for Safer Fleets, and its monthly driver resource pack includes posters, short messages and a toolbox talk video you can share with drivers.

How Convey helps

The hardest part of roadworthiness is rarely knowing what to do. It is doing it consistently across every vehicle and depot and being able to show it. That is where Convey comes in.

Convey brings the pieces of roadworthiness compliance together in one place for haulage and passenger transport operators:

• WalkAround checks give drivers a consistent way to complete pre-use checks and report defects, so nothing relies on paper that can go missing.
• Workshop and MOT scheduling keeps planned maintenance and test dates in view, so inspections are booked before they fall due.
• Fleet management gives transport managers a clear view of each vehicle’s status across depots.
• A digital record of checks, defects and maintenance creates the audit trail that DfBB recommends, ready for when you need it.

Make roadworthiness part of the routine

Prioritising roadworthiness is about more than avoiding fines. It protects your drivers, your passengers or loads, and everyone else on the road. With winter on the way, now is a good time to review your policy, refresh driver briefings and make sure every check is recorded.

Want to see how Convey can help your depots stay on top of walkaround checks and maintenance?  Get in touch with our team via email at sales@convey-tech.com or call today on 01793 676257.

Sources

• Driving for Better Business, Fleet Safety Focus: Vehicle Roadworthiness, November 2026
• DVSA, Guide to maintaining roadworthiness
• National Highways, T.R.I.P. campaign resources