How long must vehicle inspection records be kept?

Keeping the right records for the right length of time is a condition of holding a Goods Vehicle Operator's Licence. When DVSA or a Traffic Commissioner asks to see your vehicle inspection history, having complete, accessible records dating back at least 15 months is what separates a compliant operator from one facing formal action.

What vehicle inspection records are

Vehicle inspection records cover every documented check, defect and repair in a vehicle's maintenance history. For UK goods vehicle operators, this includes:

• Driver daily walkaround check records — the written or digital record of each pre-use inspection carried out by the driver before a journey. See our guide to daily walkaround check legal requirements for what these must cover.
• Defect reports — any defect recorded by a driver during a walkaround or during use, including the date, time, vehicle, driver, and nature of the defect. Our defect reporting guide explains the minor, major, and dangerous categories.
• Repair and rectification records — what was done to fix a reported defect, by whom, using what parts, and when.
• Return-to-service sign-offs — the written certification by a competent person that a vehicle is roadworthy following a repair or inspection.
• Periodic maintenance inspection (PMI) records — the record of each scheduled safety inspection, the findings, and any work carried out.
• MOT certificates and annual test records.
• Vehicle Off Road records — documentation of any period when a vehicle was grounded. See our article on Vehicle Off Road status for the full record-keeping requirements.

Together, these documents form the maintenance history that DVSA examiners and Traffic Commissioners review when assessing an operator's compliance with their O-licence compliance undertakings.

How long operators must keep walkaround and defect records

DVSA's Guide to Maintaining Roadworthiness is the primary reference for record retention periods. It states that operators should keep vehicle inspection and maintenance records for a minimum of 15 months.

This 15-month figure applies across the main categories of maintenance record:

• Driver daily walkaround check sheets or digital records
• Defect reports raised by drivers or workshop staff
• Repair records and sign-offs
• Periodic maintenance inspection (PMI) records
• Brake test results
• VOR records and prohibition notices

MOT certificates should be kept for as long as you hold the vehicle, and for a reasonable period after disposal — they form part of the vehicle's documented history.

There is no upper limit on retention. Keeping records for longer than 15 months is never a compliance problem. Some operators retain full maintenance histories for the life of the vehicle, which gives a more complete picture during audits and can be useful when investigating recurring defects.

Why the 15-month retention period matters

The 15-month figure is not arbitrary. DVSA compliance visits and Traffic Commissioner public inquiries typically review an operator's maintenance records over the previous 12 to 15 months. This window is designed to cover two full inspection cycles for a vehicle on a six-weekly PMI schedule — a common frequency for HGVs — plus a short buffer.

If an operator only keeps the most recent three or six months of records, they will be unable to demonstrate compliance across the full audit window. That gap — even if the underlying maintenance was carried out correctly — will appear as a failure of record-keeping, which is itself a compliance concern.

Traffic Commissioners have the power to call an operator to a public inquiry if DVSA reports persistent record-keeping failures. The outcome of such inquiries can include formal warnings, short-period licences, licence curtailment, or, in serious cases, licence revocation. Retaining the right records for the right period is the simplest way to avoid that exposure.

What good inspection records should include

Keeping records for 15 months is the minimum. The quality of those records matters as much as their existence. DVSA guidance makes clear that inspection records should be sufficiently detailed to demonstrate that each check was genuinely carried out. A record that shows only "no defects" with no other detail is weaker evidence than one that shows what was checked, who checked it, and when.

Good daily walkaround records should include:

• Driver name and signature (or digital equivalent)
• Date and time of the check
• Vehicle registration number
• Whether any defects were found, and if so, a clear description of each
• The driver's declaration that the check was completed

Good defect records should include:

• Date and time the defect was reported
• Nature and location of the defect
• Name of the person who reported it
• Action taken — repair, VOR, referral to workshop
• Date and time the repair was completed
• Name of the person who carried out the repair
• Return-to-service sign-off, with date and signature

Incomplete records — missing signatures, undated entries, defects with no follow-up action documented — are regularly cited in Traffic Commissioner decisions as evidence of inadequate management systems, even where the physical maintenance may have been carried out.

Paper vs digital record keeping

The 15-month requirement applies regardless of whether records are kept on paper or digitally. DVSA accepts both. However, the practical challenges differ significantly between the two approaches.

Paper records require physical storage and retrieval. A fleet running daily walkaround checks across ten vehicles for 15 months generates thousands of individual check sheets. Filing these in a way that allows rapid retrieval — by vehicle, by date range, or by defect type — is a significant organisational task. Paper is also vulnerable to loss, damage, and deterioration.

Digital records eliminate most of these problems. A timestamped digital submission from a driver is automatically stored, searchable, and auditable. There is no risk of a check sheet being lost in the cab or misfiled at the office. Digital systems can generate reports showing all checks carried out in a date range, all defects reported on a specific vehicle, or all open defects awaiting repair — exactly the kind of summary a compliance audit might require.

DVSA does not require digital records, but many operators find that moving to digital walkaround check software makes the 15-month retention obligation easier to meet in practice.

What happens when records are missing or incomplete

During a DVSA compliance visit, examiners will typically request inspection records for a sample of vehicles. If records are missing — whether lost, never kept, or retained for too short a period — the examiner will note this as a finding. Repeated or systemic record-keeping failures are escalated and may result in a formal investigation or referral to the Traffic Commissioner.

Missing records also have practical consequences beyond regulatory risk. Without a complete maintenance history, it is harder to:

• Identify vehicles with recurring defects before they cause a roadside prohibition
• Demonstrate due diligence if a vehicle is involved in an accident and the maintenance history is scrutinised
• Support insurance claims or legal proceedings that depend on the vehicle's documented condition
• Demonstrate compliance to potential customers or clients who ask for evidence of fleet standards

Operators who cannot produce records for a requested period often argue that the maintenance was carried out even if the paperwork is missing. Traffic Commissioners are clear on this point: an operator's undertaking is to both maintain vehicles properly and keep proper records. Doing one without the other is a partial failure.

How digital records can help operators stay organised

The challenge for most operators is not knowing what records to keep — it is maintaining the discipline to keep them consistently, across every driver, every vehicle, and every shift, for 15 months or more.

Digital systems enforce that discipline by design. When a driver completes a walkaround check on a phone or tablet, the record is created automatically, timestamped, and stored in a central system. There is no option to skip the form or leave fields blank if the system is configured correctly. The operator sees the check the moment it is submitted.

Defect records follow the same logic. A defect reported digitally triggers a notification to the transport manager or dispatcher, creates a task for the workshop, and tracks the repair through to the return-to-service sign-off. The full chain — from driver report to closed defect — is documented in one place, searchable by vehicle, date, or defect type.

When DVSA requests records for a specific vehicle over the previous 15 months, a digital system can produce a complete, formatted report in minutes. The alternative — searching through filing cabinets and loose check sheets — is time-consuming, error-prone, and risks presenting an incomplete picture.

Keep your records — and your O-licence — in order

HauliK stores driver walkaround checks, defect reports, repair sign-offs, VOR history, and maintenance and PMI records in one place, accessible from the web dashboard. Records are retained for at least 15 months, searchable by vehicle or date range, and can be exported for compliance audits.

If your fleet is still managing inspection records on paper or across disconnected spreadsheets, it may be worth looking at what digital walkaround check software can do for your compliance administration.