If you are an operator, you must decide whether to undertake your own safety inspection and maintenance work in-house or to contract all or part of the work to someone else. If you decide to provide your own safety inspection facilities, you must ensure that they are adequate for the job.
Facilities should include:
- undercover accommodation for the largest vehicle in the fleet. This is required to ensure that safety checks can be conducted satisfactorily in all weathers (depending on fleet size the building may need room for more than one vehicle at a time);
- tools and equipment appropriate to the size and nature of the fleet;
- an adequate under-vehicle inspection facility;
- adequate lighting;
- access to brake test equipment (e.g. a roller brake tester, decelerometer);
- access to headlamp test equipment;
- access to steam or pressure under-vehicle washing facilities;
- a safe working environment.
If an operator fails to maintain vehicles in a safe and roadworthy condition with the facilities provided the Traffic Commissioner may take regulatory action.
Source: Page 25 (Section 5) of the DVSA Guide to Maintaining Roadworthiness.