If you are choosing software for managing 6 weekly inspections, the test is simple. Will it stop a PMI being missed, show you what is due next, and leave a clear record that stands up when DVSA asks for it. If it cannot do those three things without workarounds, it is not doing the real job.
For most UK operators running five to a hundred vehicles, the problem is not a lack of data. It is control. Dates move. Vehicles come off the road. Defects need chasing. Someone has to decide whether a unit is fit to go out, book the next preventative maintenance inspection, file the sheet, and keep the O-licence side clean. Good software helps with that day after day. Bad software gives you a tidy dashboard while the actual risk sits in a missed inspection and a weak paper trail.
What good 6 weekly inspection software actually has to do
In a UK fleet, six weekly inspections are not a design exercise. They are part of how you keep vehicles compliant, available and defensible. The software has to reflect that.
First, it must plan the inspection cycle properly. That means setting the PMI interval by vehicle or asset, calculating the next due date from the last completed inspection, and showing upcoming work clearly enough that booking can happen before you have a problem. It also needs to cope with real life. A trailer may be on hire. A unit may be off the road. A vehicle may need bringing forward because of mileage, workload or workshop capacity. If the system only works when every vehicle follows a perfect repeating pattern, it will fail in use.
Second, it must support roadworthiness control. A PMI is not just a date in a calendar. It is a formal inspection record tied to a vehicle, a technician, findings, repairs, sign-off and next due date. If a defect is found, the software should make it obvious whether it was rectified, deferred, or still open. If a vehicle should not be used, that needs to be visible straight away. This matters to the person making the daily call on whether a vehicle can go out. It also matters if DVSA later asks how you controlled defects between inspections.
Third, it must produce a record that makes sense to someone outside your business. That means an inspection history by vehicle, document storage, technician notes that can actually be read, and a timeline showing what happened and when. In a DVSA visit, nobody is impressed because your software looks modern. They want to see evidence. They want to follow the chain from scheduled PMI, to completed inspection, to defect rectification, to continued use of the vehicle. We have written separately about which maintenance records stand up in a DVSA audit, because this is where weak systems usually show themselves.
There is also a UK-specific point worth saying plainly. Operators here are dealing with O-licence obligations, DVSA expectations, OCRS implications, MOT planning and often tachograph issues in the same office. Generic fleet software built around broad European use cases can miss that. What looks acceptable in a general transport product may still leave gaps for a UK operator facing a Traffic Commissioner.
The main types compared and where each one falls short
Most operators we speak to have already tried something. Usually it is one of four types.
Spreadsheets
Spreadsheets are common because they are cheap, familiar and quick to start. For a very small fleet, they can hold a vehicle list, last PMI date, next due date and MOT expiry. That is useful up to a point.
The problem is that spreadsheets do not control anything by themselves. They rely on one person remembering to update them correctly every time. They do not create a proper inspection record. They do not tie defects to rectification work. They do not show an audit trail unless you bolt on other processes around them. Once you have several vehicles due each week, plus trailers, plus defects, plus rescheduled bookings, the sheet becomes a reminder list, not a management system.
The real danger is false confidence. A spreadsheet can look complete while the workshop paperwork sits elsewhere and does not match it.
Generic maintenance tools
The next step is often a maintenance system built for plant, vans, mixed assets or general servicing. These tools usually handle service intervals, job cards and reminders better than a spreadsheet.
Where they fall short is in the specifics of commercial vehicle compliance. A service reminder is not the same thing as a PMI control process. Many generic tools treat all maintenance events the same. They can store a document, but they do not necessarily distinguish between a preventative maintenance inspection, a repair, a safety defect and an MOT preparation. They may not make missed inspection visibility obvious. They may not support a workshop inspection sheet in a way that leaves a clean history by vehicle. They often assume that if a job is created, the compliance issue is managed. It is not.
For operators carrying O-licence responsibility, that gap matters.
Fleet platforms
Broader fleet platforms usually add driver, fuel, fines, tracking, documents and reporting. Some are strong on fleet overview and useful for larger mixed operations.
The weakness is often on the workshop floor. The office can see that a PMI is due, but the process of completing it, recording findings, attaching evidence and chasing rectification is clumsy. A platform built around fleet administration may treat the workshop as a data source rather than the place where roadworthiness decisions are made. That is why so many systems look good in a demo and then start to creak as soon as the workshop gets busy. We covered that in more detail in why good fleet software breaks down in a busy workshop.
For fleets of five to a hundred vehicles, this matters more than people expect. You are usually not big enough to have separate departments smoothing over software gaps. The same few people are doing the work.
Workshop-led systems
Workshop-led systems start from the inspection itself. They are usually better at PMIs, defect recording, job flow, technician notes and maintenance history. That is the right starting point if your main risk is missed inspections and weak records.
But not every workshop system is good at operator control. Some are built mainly for retail garage work or invoicing. They can record jobs, but not give the operator a strong view of upcoming PMIs, overdue items, or compliance status across the fleet. Others are good for a workshop serving many customers, but awkward for an operator managing their own vehicles and wanting one clean compliance view.
The right answer is not simply “buy workshop software”. It is to check whether the system handles both sides, the inspection process itself and the operator’s need for clear control.
How to compare systems against PMI control
If you are comparing options, strip the sales language away and test the software against the actual control points.
Scheduling that reflects reality
The system should let you set a PMI interval per vehicle or asset, then calculate and display the next due inspection clearly. It should also cope with moved bookings, off-road periods and exceptions without breaking the history.
Ask to see:
- a planner showing due this week, due next week and overdue
- the ability to filter by vehicle type, depot or customer
- how the next date is created after a completed PMI
- what happens if an inspection is completed late
- what happens if a vehicle is sold, hired out or stood down
A lot of systems can remind you that something is due. Fewer can show the status cleanly when the plan changes.
Missed inspection visibility
This is one of the biggest tests. If a PMI is missed, can the system make that impossible to ignore?
You want overdue items shown plainly on the main screen, not buried in a report. You want to know which vehicles are outside schedule, by how long, and whether a booking exists. If a vehicle has gone past its due date with no completed inspection, the software should be uncomfortable about it.
This sounds basic, but it is where many systems fail. They show future bookings nicely and hide overdue control in a corner. That is backwards.
If this is your current pain point, our guide on how to stop missed PMIs on lorries before DVSA finds them sets out the practical warning signs.
Defect follow-up
A PMI record on its own is not enough. The software should connect findings to action.
That means:
- recording defects against the inspection
- assigning repair work
- showing whether defects are rectified, deferred or still open
- linking notes, parts and labour if needed
- making unresolved safety defects visible before vehicle use
If a technician notes brake wear, tyre damage or a lighting issue, you need to see the trail through to rectification. If the defect is deferred, there should be a reason and a record. If the vehicle is not fit for service, the system should not leave that to memory.
Technician notes and evidence
Workshop records need to be usable, not just present. Free text notes matter. So do signatures, dates, times and photo evidence where relevant.
Check whether the software allows technicians to record findings quickly without fighting the screen. If note entry is awkward, notes get shortened or skipped. If image upload is too slow, evidence stays on a phone and never reaches the record. We have shown one practical way of recording PMI inspections with photo evidence because this is often harder in practice than the brochure suggests.
Document history
The system should keep a complete vehicle history in one place. PMIs, repair records, MOT documents, brake test results if you hold them, and supporting files should be easy to find by vehicle registration or fleet number.
In an audit or investigation, speed matters. You do not want to open three systems and a shared drive just to explain one inspection sequence.
What matters when the workshop and the office are the same people
In small haulage firms and commercial vehicle workshops, jobs overlap. The person booking the vehicle may also be the person checking the inspection sheet, deciding on roadworthiness, updating the customer, filing the record and answering any question about the O-licence.
Software needs to help that person think clearly under pressure.
That means one screen showing what is due, what is overdue, what is in the workshop and what is still waiting for paperwork. It means not having to re-enter the same vehicle details in three places. It means being able to answer simple operational questions quickly:
- Is this unit due a PMI soon?
- Has today’s inspection been signed off?
- Are there any open defects?
- Where is the last inspection sheet?
- Has the trailer gone through yet?
- Can this vehicle go out tomorrow?
This is where systems built by pure software teams often miss the mark. They assume a handoff between departments that does not exist. In real life, one person is interrupted ten times while trying to book inspections and decide what can leave the yard.
A good system also respects the fact that paperwork is part of the work, not an extra. If completing the digital record takes longer than doing the inspection, people will cut corners. If the software makes the office chase technicians for missing notes at the end of the day, your compliance record depends on goodwill and memory.
Because we run a working HGV workshop ourselves, this is the bit we refuse to treat as theory. The software has to survive a day where a unit turns up late, another fails on defects, the phone keeps ringing, and someone still needs a clean answer on whether the fleet is covered.
Questions to ask before you buy or switch
A demo can make almost anything look tidy. What you need is proof that the system works in your operation.
Use this checklist.
Ask them to show one vehicle through a full cycle
Not just the planner. Ask them to show:
- vehicle setup
- PMI interval
- booking the inspection
- completing the inspection
- recording a defect
- closing the defect
- producing the full history
If they jump between screens and speak in general terms, keep pushing. You are testing whether the process is joined up.
Ask what happens when things go wrong
This is where the truth comes out.
Ask:
- What happens if a PMI is missed?
- What happens if the inspection is completed late?
- What happens if a defect is found but parts are not available?
- What happens if a vehicle is off the road for two weeks?
- What happens if the wrong date was entered?
Good software should have a clear answer to each. If the answer is “you can always export to Excel”, that is your warning.
Ask who the system is really built for
Is it built for fleet administration, workshop job management, or actual PMI control? Those are not the same thing. A supplier should be able to say plainly where the product is strongest and where it is not.
Test the record quality
During a trial, create a few real or dummy PMIs and then pretend DVSA has asked for the file.
Can you pull up the inspection record quickly? Can you see who completed it? Can you see what defects were found and what happened next? Can you print or export a clean record if needed?
If the history is messy after a week of testing, it will be worse after a year.
Put your busiest person in front of it
Do not let only the most patient office user test the system. Put the person who actually carries the pressure on it. The transport manager. The workshop controller. The owner who does half the admin. If they cannot use it without slowing down, the software is not right for you.
Check the migration work honestly
If you are switching, ask what needs importing on day one and what can stay archived elsewhere. You probably need live vehicle records, current inspection schedules and key document history. You may not need every old job card imported. A sensible supplier will help you separate what is operationally necessary from what is nice to have.
Make them show the overdue view first
Not the dashboard with green ticks. The overdue list. The missed PMIs. The open defects. That is where software earns its keep.
Choosing software for managing 6 weekly inspections is really about choosing how you will control PMI discipline in the real world. The right system makes due dates hard to miss, defects hard to lose, and records easy to defend. The wrong one gives you a cleaner screen and the same old risks underneath.
If you are comparing options now, start from the inspection record and work outward. Not the other way round. That is usually the quickest way to see whether a system was built for actual workshop and compliance work, or just for looking organised.
Does software set the right inspection interval for my fleet?
No. Software can schedule and flag dates, but the inspection frequency must suit the vehicle, operation and maintenance system. The operator remains responsible for setting and justifying it.
Is a 6 weekly plan always acceptable to DVSA?
Not automatically. A six-week interval may be suitable for some fleets, but DVSA will expect the maintenance plan to match how the vehicles are used and kept fit for service.
Can I manage PMI dates in a spreadsheet instead?
You can, but spreadsheets usually struggle once dates move, vehicles come off road, defects need tracking and inspection records must be produced quickly and clearly.
What records should the software keep for inspections?
At minimum, it should keep the planned date, completed date, inspection report, defects found, rectification record and who signed work off, with documents easy to retrieve.
Do I need software if an external workshop does the inspections?
Often yes. Even if another workshop carries out the preventative maintenance inspection, the operator still needs control of dates, records and follow-up for the vehicles on the O-licence.
