HGV Daily Check Templates: What Drivers Must Record by Law
HGV Daily Check Templates: What Drivers Must Record by Law
An HGV daily check template has one legal job: prove the vehicle was inspected, by whom, and what was found. Most templates in circulation do the first half — a tick column and a signature — and skip the half that matters at a public inquiry. This guide sets out what the law requires the daily check to cover, what the record itself must show, how long you must keep it, and whether a paper template still cuts it against a digital one.
What the Law Requires From an HGV Daily Check
DVSA’s Guide to Maintaining Roadworthiness (GTMR), last updated April 2025, requires that a driver or responsible person undertakes a walkaround check before a vehicle is used — at minimum, once in every 24 hours the vehicle is in operation. The check covers everything readily visible without dismantling.
The driver carries personal responsibility: gov.uk’s guidance is blunt that you are responsible for making sure your vehicle is safe to drive, and using an HGV in a dangerous condition carries an unlimited fine and a possible prison sentence. For O-licence holders the daily check is part of the maintenance system the traffic commissioner expects to see working — and DVSA can ask for the record of your check at a roadside stop.
The Checklist: What Drivers Must Inspect
Gov.uk’s HGV walkaround guidance lists the items a daily check template should cover. In the cab:
- mirrors, glass and front view; wipers and washers; dashboard warning lights; steering; horn; brakes and air build-up; seatbelts; height marker; cab doors and steps
Outside the vehicle:
- lights and indicators; tyres and wheels (HGV minimum tread depth 1mm); brake lines and electrical connections; fuel and oil leaks; battery security; AdBlue level; exhaust smoke; body and wings; coupling security; load security; number plates, reflectors and markings; spray suppression
A good template walks the same physical route around the vehicle every time, so nothing depends on the driver’s memory. For the routine itself — order, timing, common failure points — see our guide to driver walkaround checks.
What the Record Must Show
This is where most templates fall short. When a defect is found, DVSA guidance requires the record to capture:
- the vehicle registration or identification mark
- the date, and details of the defects or symptoms
- the driver’s assessment — for example, marking the defect ‘dangerous’
- the driver’s name and who the defect was reported to
- the rectification work done and when it was completed (per GTMR)
Two rules complete the legal picture. First, record ‘nil’ defects when nothing is found — the nil report is the proof the check happened. Second, keep driver defect reports and rectification records for at least 15 months. A template without a nil option and a rectification section cannot satisfy either. What happens when recorded faults get ignored — and what that costs a site — is covered in our post on ignoring equipment faults on construction sites.
Paper Template or Digital? What DVSA Accepts
Both are legal. The Guide to Maintaining Roadworthiness explicitly accepts electronic records, including checks completed on smartphones or tablets, provided the system is tamper-proof, keeps an audit trail of what was checked and by whom, supports a digital signature, and can produce a hard copy on request.
The practical difference shows up at audit. Paper templates get lost, filled in from the cab seat, and photocopied into illegibility; a digital check is timestamped, photo-attached and filed the moment it is submitted.
Worth knowing: the 15-month retention rule is where paper systems quietly fail — the check was done, but nobody can produce it. workMule’s digital daily checks put every check, defect report and certificate in one searchable, audit-ready dashboard, so the retention period takes care of itself.
Frequently Asked Questions
How often must an HGV daily check be done?
At least once in every 24-hour period the vehicle is in use, and GTMR says preferably immediately before the vehicle is first used. If a vehicle runs around the clock, the check must be repeated within each 24 hours — the template should record the time as well as the date.
Do drivers have to record a check when there are no defects?
Yes — gov.uk guidance says to record ‘nil’ defects when nothing is found, and GTMR recommends operators build nil reporting into the driver defect system. Without a nil record there is no evidence the HGV daily check took place, which at a roadside stop is the same as not having done it.
How long must HGV daily check records be kept?
Driver defect reports and the rectification work recorded against them must be kept for at least 15 months, the same period GTMR applies to safety inspection records. DVSA or a traffic commissioner can ask for that history, so the template needs a filing system behind it.
Is a paper HGV daily check template still legal?
Yes. GTMR accepts paper or electronic records as long as the essential information is captured and can be produced for examination. The legal risk with paper is practical rather than formal: lost sheets, missing rectification entries and no proof the check happened when it says it did.
Conclusion
A compliant HGV daily check template is defined by the record, not the tick-list: the defect fields DVSA names, a nil option, a rectification loop, and 15 months of retrievable history. Get those four right and the daily check protects the driver, the vehicle and the O-licence at once.
workMule turns the daily check template into a guided, photo-attached check on the driver’s phone, with every record searchable and audit-ready. Book a free demo and see how an audit-proof daily check feels.
