The call came through on a Tuesday morning at quarter past nine. Vehicle examiner at the gate, wanted to come in, no advance notice. I'd been TM at that operation for two years and it was the first premises inspection I'd had. Wasn't the last.
There's a version of this where you're well-prepared — records in order, download cycles up to date, PMI paperwork filed correctly, driver files complete — and the inspection is uncomfortable but manageable. There's another version where the PMI for three vehicles is overdue, the WTD records are in a folder nobody's touched since last spring, and the last tachograph download for two drivers is six weeks old. That version is a different conversation with the Traffic Commissioner.
The legal powers behind the inspection
DVSA examiners — and traffic examiners, and in some circumstances police officers — can enter your operating premises at any time they consider reasonable, without prior notice. This comes from Section 99 of the Transport Act 1968. They don't need a warrant. They need a reasonable belief that a relevant vehicle or records are kept there. For a licensed haulage operator, that condition is always met.
On written demand, you must produce required documents within 10 days. But a premises inspection is typically in-person and immediate. The examiner arrives, shows identification, and the review begins. Obstructing an inspector carries a fine up to Level 3 on the standard scale. Falsifying records that are then examined is an offence carrying up to two years' imprisonment on indictment.
The powers cover inspection and copying of tachograph records — charts for analogue vehicles, digital data and printouts, driver cards. They extend to maintenance records, driver files, operator licence documents. If they suspect a record has been falsified, they can seize it.
What they actually look at
Priorities vary by examiner and by what triggered the visit, but the standard scope covers:
Tachograph download records. Specifically: are you downloading the vehicle unit at least every 90 days, and are you downloading driver cards at least every 28 days? A printout of your last download report for each vehicle and each driver is what they want to see. If downloads are late — even a few days over the 90 or 28-day window — that's a compliance failure that shows on the record.
They may also look at what the analysis is showing: infringement reports, severity grades, what follow-up action has been taken. An operator who generates infringement reports and then does nothing with them is in a worse position than one who generates the same infringements but has a written process for discussing them with drivers and applying graduated responses.
Preventive maintenance inspection records. Your vehicles should be on a written maintenance inspection schedule — typically six-weekly for most goods vehicles, though the interval can vary. The inspector wants to see the completed PMI reports, the defect records, and evidence that faults identified have been actioned within a reasonable timeframe. A defect flagged on the PMI that then appears on the next PMI report without having been addressed is the kind of thing that makes an inspector look harder at everything else.
Driver files. Each driver should have a file — current licence check, current CPC records, medical declaration where relevant, induction paperwork. Examiners check that the operator is actually verifying licence entitlements regularly and not just at the point of employment. If you've got a driver who's been on the books for three years and the last DVLA check on their licence was at hire, that's a gap.
Operator licence documents. The disc goes in the vehicle. The main licence document is kept at the operating centre. They'll check you have both and that they reflect the current vehicle authorisation.
Working time records. WTD record-keeping sits alongside tachograph compliance. If the tachograph data is the only source of WTD working-time records, it must be kept for at least 24 months. Other working-time records — paper-based records of other work, agency driver records — should be available for at least two years.
What triggers a visit
Inspections aren't always random. Your OCRS score — Operator Compliance Risk Score — determines how often DVSA is likely to target you. Operators on the green band get fewer roadside stops and fewer premises inspections. Amber brings more attention. Red can trigger a directed visit.
What gets your OCRS score moving in the wrong direction: prohibition notices on vehicles, tachograph or drivers' hours offences recorded at roadside, fixed penalty notices, outcomes from previous premises inspections. A couple of PG9s in a short period will move a fleet from green to amber quickly — I covered the OCRS mechanics in more detail [in this post on the red zone and recovery](/blog/ocrs-red-zone-what-drops-a-fleet-and-how-to-climb-back).
Complaints can also trigger a visit. A disgruntled ex-employee who knows where your compliance gaps are, or a member of the public who's reported dangerous driving — the DVSA follow-up isn't always immediate, but it's not forgotten either.
How to handle the inspection on the day
Don't panic and don't obstruct. The examiner has a job to do and a professional approach goes a long way. Get the right person involved quickly — if you're the TM, that's you. If you're not, contact the TM immediately. Don't have someone from accounts try to manage the inspection while the TM is unreachable.
Produce what you're asked for. If something is genuinely unavailable — off-site, with a third-party analyst, in the middle of a download — say so clearly and give a realistic timeframe. Making excuses or being evasive with an inspector will always make things worse.
Take notes of what's being reviewed and what the examiner notes as concerns. This is your record of the inspection if it subsequently leads to a prohibition or a TC referral. You're entitled to know what's being examined and to keep a record for yourself.
What happens after
If the inspection finds no significant issues, the examiner typically issues a DVSA inspection report summarising what was checked and any minor observations. Good inspection outcomes feed positively into your OCRS.
If issues are found, the examiner can issue prohibition notices on specific vehicles (PG9 or PG10 depending on whether they're immediate or delayed), refer findings to the TC, or both. A referral to the TC means the operator may receive a call-up letter requesting information or attendance at a preliminary hearing or public inquiry.
The OCRS impact of a premises inspection depends on what was found. Vehicle prohibitions are the most visible — each PG9 carries an adverse encounter on the record that remains visible for three years. The analysis of records, by contrast, feeds into the overall profile the TC sees if a public inquiry follows.
The records you should have ready without being asked
Running a regular, internal mock inspection is not a bad idea. Every quarter, sit down with the documents an examiner would ask for and check they're in order:
- Last download date for each vehicle unit and each driver card
- Last PMI date and completion of any defects flagged
- Driver licence check dates and current CPC records for all drivers
- Operator licence disc location in each vehicle
- Last tachograph calibration date and certificate for each vehicle
- WTD working-time records for at least the past 24 months
If you can answer every item on that list without opening the wrong drawer three times, you're in a decent position. If you can't, that's worth knowing before the examiner is at the gate rather than after.
Running this kind of compliance oversight across a fleet — download schedules, driver records, inspection dates — is a lot of moving parts to track in a spreadsheet. ShiftOwt handles driver availability and 561/WTD compliance tracking in one place, fleet pricing on request.