(Photo: Logistics UK)
Regular vehicle inspections have the potential to save UK haulage firms millions of pounds while ensuring road safety, according to new analysis from business group Logistics UK.
Research from the organisation’s Vehicle Inspection Service (VIS) shows that preventative maintenance could save the country’s heavy goods vehicle (HGV) operators as much as £203 million annually. The figure is based on an analysis of more than 40,000 inspections carried out between April 2024 and March 2025.
The study found that each inspection where at least one defect was identified, no matter how minor, saved operators an average of ÂŁ545 per vehicle by avoiding costly repairs and unexpected downtime. With almost 60% of HGVs inspected showing at least one defect, the savings potential is significant.
Chris Lipscomb, Director of Operations at Logistics UK, stressed that inspections are not only about meeting regulatory standards. “Defects identified during an inspection can range from blown bulbs to more serious steering and braking defects, but they all have the potential to cause disruption if they need to be remedied when a vehicle should be operational,” he explained.
“Operators are aware of their legal responsibilities regarding preventative maintenance, but the potential savings our research identifies show there is a financial business case for operating safe and roadworthy vehicles, alongside the operator’s legal and moral duty.”
Logistics UK’s latest Compliance Report 2025 shows that industry standards have improved significantly over the past 15 years. The initial HGV test failure rate has dropped from 32.4% in 2008/09 to 10.3% in 2024/25, while the final failure rate — the proportion of vehicles that still fail after rectification — has fallen from 17.7% to 6.9%.
According to Mr Lipscomb, these improvements reflect both operational and cultural changes within the industry. “These positive trends in vehicle compliance show how seriously operators take their responsibilities and reflect a combination of cultural change and operational improvements as well as changes to regulatory requirements. In addition, the increased expectations of the DVSA have encouraged operators to adopt more proactive maintenance regimes. This has always been best practice within the industry but not only is preventative maintenance now an expectation, our research shows that it has the potential to save operators thousands of pounds.”
Logistics UK, which conducts tens of thousands of inspections each year across HGVs, PSVs, LCVs and specialist vehicles, is encouraging operators to explore the savings and safety benefits of its Vehicle Inspection Service.