Helpful Articles
There is a simpler, smarter way to do HGV inspections
Mandata’s Vehicle Checks app enables drivers to record checks on their smartphones and recall results at on-the-spot gate checks and roadside inspections. It’s all you need to stay informed, compliant, and ahead of the curve.
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Watch the Vehicle Checks app in action
With Mandata’s Vehicle Checks app, your drivers can carry out inspections on the working condition of heavy goods vehicles using a vehicle check sheet template on their smartphone.
Inspections are uploaded to your Mandata system instantly for your team to see, whilst simple colour coding highlights if a vehicle has passed or failed. It also shows the time it took to complete the inspection, indicating whether a check was carried out correctly.
Carrying out inspections
Carrying out daily checks are both quick and easy with the vehicle checks app. The app provides the haulier with three templates to choose from: artic, rigid or trailer. However, it is also possible to create templates bespoke to the haulier’s own business inspection requirements.
The questions comprise of either yes or no, multiple choice or free text answers with each answer providing a colour coded bar to the side indicating a pass, or various measures of failure.
Providing proof
When completing the various questions, it’s important to provide proof for various passes or failures. The app allows drivers to upload pictures of the vehicle to send to the TMS for the planners to view the extent of the damage, or cross-check that something is indeed a pass.
Completing the inspection
Once a check is complete the driver provides their signature in the app and submits the inspection. The inspection is then uploaded to the TMS in real time, and the planner will be notified via SMS or email that a check has been complete. If a vehicle has failed in an area, automated emails can be set up to notify the hauliers’ workshop and book that vehicle in.
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Choose the right template for the vehicle or trailer
So you can choose the right template for your vehicle or trailer, the Vehicle Checks app provides a wide range of standard DVSA vehicle inspection checklist templates for:
- Articulated lorries
- Rigid lorries
- Trailers
Each template consists of a series of easy-to-answer, multiple-choice checklists to walk drivers through all the steps of a vehicle inspection. Drivers can also add notes and further templates can be added as needed, tailored to match the equipment on your own vehicles and trailers.
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Find problems early with Vehicle Checks app from Mandata
Find problems early
Use technology to highlight and manage potential points of failure, so you can remain proactive and compliant throughout. Some of the most popular features in the app include:
- Simple colour coding that highlights if the vehicle has passed or failed.
- Inspections are uploaded to the Mandata system as soon as they are signed off and closed.
- Email alerts to notify staff (workshop, traffic office etc) if there’s an issue.
- Reports on all or specific vehicles including missed or rushed inspections.
- Automatic triggers for detected defects, which can immediately be sent to the appropriate person or department to help them take appropriate action as soon as possible.
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Add photos of defects
In those instances where it will help the workshop to see a picture of the defect, drivers can take photos with the Vehicle Checks built-in camera function and attach them to the check.
Images are instantly uploaded to your Mandata system to be viewed by your team.
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Recall results on the spot
Inspections are saved on each mobile device for 7 days so they can be instantly recalled for on-the-spot gate checks and roadside inspections.
Any defects that were missed can be recorded, and the re-inspection is saved separately to the initial checks to give you full visibility of the amendments that were required.
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Informed teams all round
Alert your traffic team about defects and give your workshop the visibility they need to get your vehicles back on the road as soon as possible.
Your traffic planners will receive instant feedback if a vehicle is off-road or requiring maintenance, whilst colour-coded icons on their job planner prevents the scheduling of vehicles if they’re unavailable.
A series of reports provides complete inspection results and helps you check that all your vehicles have been inspected correctly and at the appropriate times. Where defects are reported, you can add the workshop job reference to your TMS to track the progress of repairs and record resolutions against the inspection.
We specialise mainly in hiab vehicles, and have a diverse fleet from vans, smaller lifting vehicles, standard flat beds and crane trailers. We tailored the vehicle checklists in the Vehicle Checks app to our style of haulage and since we launched it in the business, we're far better informed. It's meant we're not relying on paper checks and receive instantaneous results throughout the day, and can react quickly to issues that may arise.