3rd November 2017 | DAF UK

DAFcheck earns DVSA’s Earned Recognition

DAFcheck, DAF Trucks’ network-wide electronic vehicle maintenance record system, has been validated by the DVSA to align with its new Earned Recognition scheme. DAFcheck becomes one of the first data-sharing systems to pass DVSA validation. Already, DAF Trucks has seen a spike in enquiries from operators wishing to engage in the scheme through DAFcheck.

DAFcheck earns DVSA’s Earned Recognition

Earned Recognition – launched at the CV Show in April – allows operators to prove that they comply with driver and vehicle standards, with the benefit of reducing the likelihood of being subjected to roadside inspections, thus boosting productivity. DAF Trucks formed a close working relationship with the DVSA’s Earned Recognition pilot programme which ran from April 2017 and involved a number of operators.

A key component of Earned Recognition requires that operators must supply all its vehicle compliance results via one system. While DAFcheck’s robust platform is able to accommodate trucks and trailers from any manufacturer (serviced through the DAF Dealer network), the DVSA has announced a concession until April 2021 to allow mixed-fleet operators (and various IT system suppliers) immediate opportunity to engage with the scheme.

Following the DVSA’s Earned Recognition pilot programme, DAFcheck now incorporates a series of important changes to provide greater functionality for operators, including the ability to calculate KPIs – a key element of the Earned Recognition scheme – which are then sent directly to the DVSA at each scheduled reporting period.

David Wood, DVSA Earned Recognition project lead, said, “DAF has been very supportive of the DVSA earned recognition project and were one of the first IT maintenance systems to be validated. DVSA welcomes such positive working relationships with the industry and this is an excellent example where collaborative working benefits everyone.”

Tony Shepherd, Business Services Manager at DAF Trucks, said, “This is another example of DAF Trucks’ commitment to customers. We understand the importance of vehicle uptime and we were very happy to assist the DVSA in its endeavour to introduce Earned Recognition and its very progressive approach to driver and vehicle compliance.”

One of the first DAF operators to benefit from DAFcheck’s validation with the DVSA’s Earned Recognition scheme, is Barton Petroleum – a Midlands-based fuel and lubricants supplier with a Pet Reg. fleet of 35 vehicles. Howard Marriott, Group Transport Manager, said, “It makes the whole business of compliance so simple – especially when it comes to reporting vehicle defects. The initial Earned Recognition audit was stringent, but accreditation gives us the pace-of-mind that we have among the safest, most efficient and best-maintained fleets on the road.

“We’ve been using DAFcheck for some time now,” he added, “so we are already benefiting from electronic scheduling of our regular vehicle inspections, servicing and maintenance work, with secure reporting back to us through emails and a dedicated DAFcheck web portal.”

With the benefit of almost 1900 IRTEC accredited DAF Technicians throughout the DAF Dealer network, DAFcheck helped the UK market-leader achieve over 96% MOT first-time-pass rate in 2017. Launched in 2010, DAFcheck has grown significantly year-on-year to reach an average of 6,500 jobs every week in 2017 and surpassing last November the noteworthy milestone of two million individual ‘jobs’ completed and registered by DAF Dealers through its 136 locations across the UK and Ireland.