Keeping their fleet on the right side of the law is one of the most important aspects of a fleet manager’s job. Given the ongoing evolution of government regulations and industry standards, this can be a mammoth task if you don’t have the right fleet management solutions. Explore compliance goals and insights that you can action in 2025.
Review Operator Licenses
One of the first things you should do to ensure that your fleet is compliant is to review your operator licenses, updating them if necessary. In the UK, fleet operators are required to have an operator’s license issued by the Traffic Commissioner, indicating that your fleet complies with required safety and other standards.
To do this:
- Check whether your fleet is the same size or whether you need to include new vehicle categories under your operator’s license.
- Make sure that your license records, maintenance logs, driver qualifications, and insurance details are updated.
- Stay updated regarding regulations, especially in this post-Brexit era, to ensure that your fleet complies with UK and EU standards.
Offer Enhanced Driver Education
All fleet drivers in the UK are required to have a Certificate of Professional Competence (CPC) and must complete at least 35 hours of training every five years. Take advantage of Crystal Ball’s fleet safety technology to offer enhanced driver education.
Use driver scores based on key performance indicators such as accelerating, braking, cornering, speeding, and idling, as well as alerts about poor driving behaviour, to offer specialised training modules aimed at improving safety and driving skills. Our 4G dash cam is an advanced driver assistance system that acts as an onboard coach, helping drivers improve their driving behaviour.
It’s also a good idea to offer training around fatigue management, nutrition while on the road, and mental health, which can help drivers understand the importance of personal wellbeing.
Prioritise Fleet Maintenance
Fleet operators in the UK are legally obligated to maintain their vehicle’s roadworthiness. This was emphasised in November 2024, when the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) updated its Guide to Maintaining Roadworthiness.
Ensure compliance by:
- Implementing regular maintenance schedules.
- Keeping a record of all defect reports, vehicle maintenance, and safety checks.
- Ensuring that maintenance procedures and records comply with the DVSA’s updated standards.
- Preparing your fleet for seasonal changes, especially as winter approaches.
Our fleet management solutions can help you manage vehicle maintenance. In addition to tracking vehicle speed and journey duration, our fleet vehicle tracking system can notify you about scheduled maintenance and MOT dates.
Comply with Direct Vision Standard Requirements
If there are heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) over 12 tonnes in your fleet and they operate in or travel into or through Greater London, ensure they comply with the updated Direct Vision Standard requirements. Transport for London (TfL) updated the DVS last year, with the updates coming into effect on 28 October 2024. However, fleet operators have a grace period until 4 May, provided they can prove that they have scheduled the installation of a progressive safety system (PSS) within the six-month period.
According to the updated Direct Vision Standard requirements, HGVs require a minimum rating of three stars or must be fitted with a PSS that includes:
- Camera monitoring system on the nearside of the vehicle.
- Blind spot information system to alert the driver to vulnerable road users in the vehicle’s blind spots.
- Class V and VI mirrors on the front and nearside of the vehicle, unless replaced by a camera monitoring system.
- Warning signs on the vehicle.
- Audible warnings to alert vulnerable road users when the HGV turns left (or right, if the vehicle is left-hand drive).
- Side under-run on both sides of the vehicle unless the vehicle design makes this impractical.
Crystal Ball’s Direct Vision Standard Kit London PSS complies with the most recent DVS guidelines to help your business meet these obligations seamlessly.
Ensure Tachograph Compliance
Since 2023, vehicles weighing more than 3.5 tonnes must be fitted with a smart tachograph (version one) to monitor vehicle speed, driving hours, and other metrics. This data can help you determine whether your drivers adhere to UK and EU regulations regarding driving hours and rest periods. The law requiring this fleet safety technology was updated in August 2024 to stipulate that vehicles involved in cross-border traffic must be fitted with second-version smart tachographs.
Crystal Ball’s fleet management solutions, such as our vehicle tracking system, use GPS and other advanced technologies to track driver hours and other metrics in real-time. This data can help ensure compliance with these different regulations and make informed decisions to enhance your fleet’s operational efficiency.
Remember Insurance, Environmental, and Data Protection Compliance
As a fleet manager, you need to ensure that your fleet complies with your insurance provider’s requirements and with environmental requirements such as Low-Emission Zones and Clean Air Zones.
If you use our advanced driver assistance systems and fleet management solutions such as 4G dash cams and vehicle trackers, you also need to make sure that your organisation complies with UK and EU regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This involves obtaining employee consent, only collecting data essential for your stated purposes, establishing transparent data policies, and ensuring that data is collected, processed, and stored securely.
Embrace Advanced Fleet Management Solutions
It’s impossible to overemphasise the importance of keeping your fleet on the right side of the law. Failure to comply with standards and regulations can cause upheavals in your operations and leave you facing penalty charge notices and other fines. Advanced driver assistance systems, fleet safety technology such as Crystal Ball’s 360° Vehicle CCTV system, and other fleet management solutions can transform the way you manage your fleet.
Contact Crystal Ball to boost safety, improve operational efficiency, and ensure the necessary compliance to keep operating with technology you can trust.