85% of Roadside Fines Could Be Avoided with a Proper Walkaround Check

According to the Office of the Traffic Commissioner, 85% of roadside fines for vehicle infringements could have been avoided if the driver had actually carried out a proper walkaround check before starting their journey. Not a different check. Not a more advanced check. The same check they are already supposed to do every day.

Let that sink in for a moment. We are not talking about hidden mechanical failures or defects that develop suddenly on the road. We are talking about lights that were not working when the vehicle left the yard. Tyres that were already under-inflated. Wheel nut indicators that had already moved. Defects that were sitting there, visible, waiting to be found – and the driver walked past them.

The Gap Between the Form and the Vehicle

Every transport manager has seen it. The defect report sheet comes back with every box ticked and “nil defects” written at the bottom. The vehicle goes for its PMI two weeks later and comes back with a list of driver-reportable defects – a blown sidelight, a cracked mirror, a tyre close to the limit. None of those appeared on the daily check sheets.

There are two possible explanations. Either those defects all developed in the 24 hours before the PMI, which would be spectacularly bad luck, or the driver has been ticking the boxes without actually looking at the vehicle. Every experienced transport manager knows which explanation is more likely.

This is not a driver motivation problem. Most drivers are not deliberately cutting corners because they do not care about safety. The reality is more mundane than that. The walkaround check happens at 5am, in the dark, in the rain, when the driver wants to get going. The check takes 15 minutes if it is done properly. If nobody is watching, it takes three minutes and a pen. That three-minute version is the one that leaves defects on the road.

What the DVSA Finds at the Roadside

The DVSA has published data on the most common defects found at roadside checks, and the pattern is consistent year after year. Lights. Tyres. Wheel fixings. Mirrors. Bodywork. Brake defects. Load security. These are all items on the walkaround check list. They are not obscure mechanical failures that require specialist knowledge. They are things a driver can see, touch, and test during a standard 15-minute walkaround.

For PSV operators, the picture is worse because the walkaround check list is longer. Emergency exits, wheelchair ramps, passenger seating, seatbelts, handrails, fire extinguishers, first aid kits, interior lighting – all of these are PSV-specific items that drivers are supposed to check every day. When a DVSA Vehicle Examiner boards a bus and finds that the emergency exit hammer is missing or the wheelchair ramp is jammed, the first question is whether the driver checked it that morning. The second question is whether anyone in management is supervising those checks.

The Real Cost of a Roadside Prohibition

A prohibition at the roadside is not just a fine. It is a vehicle off the road, a load that does not get delivered, a service that does not run. For HGV operators, an immediate prohibition for a brake defect or a seriously underinflated tyre means the vehicle stays where it is until the defect is fixed. For PSV operators, a prohibition can mean passengers stranded, a school run missed, or a contractual failure on a rail replacement service.

Beyond the immediate disruption, every prohibition goes on your OCRS record. A high OCRS score increases the likelihood of further DVSA attention – more roadside stops, a desk-based assessment, a maintenance investigation. If the pattern continues, it can lead to a Traffic Commissioner call-up and a Public Inquiry. Operators have lost their licences over defects that started with a walkaround check that nobody was supervising.

Why Gate Checks Change the Equation

The fix is not more training, or better forms, or a different app. The fix is supervision. Gate checks.

When a driver knows that someone might be standing at the gate, watching them do their walkaround check, the check gets done properly. Not because the driver is afraid of getting in trouble, but because it is human nature. People do a better job when they know their work is being reviewed. That is as true for a PCV driver checking emergency exits at 4:30am as it is for anyone else in any other job.

A gate check programme does three things at once. It catches defects before they reach the road, which directly reduces your prohibition risk. It identifies drivers who need additional training, which improves standards over time. And it creates a documented record of supervision, which is the evidence you need if your compliance is ever questioned.

The Office of the Traffic Commissioner says 85% of those fines were avoidable. Gate checks are how you avoid them.

Talk to us about setting up a gate check programme for your operation. Call 0345 9001312.