Scheduling Fleet Servicing | How Fleet Management Software Can Help

For vehicles such as cars, a service comes highly recommended depending on the age of the vehicle and the miles it has travelled. Often, servicing is required under the terms of a vehicle’s lease or finance agreement. For fleet vehicles such as Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs), Public Service Vehicles (PSVs) and forklift trucks, regular fleet maintenance is a legal requirement to ensure they are safe for use. Commercial vehicles need to be serviced regularly, so it is vital that they are scheduled effectively.

In this guide, we will cover how often commercial vehicles need to be serviced, how to schedule fleet servicing, and what fleet maintenance can be carried out alongside your service schedule. We will also discuss the importance of servicing, and how our fleet management software at AssetGo can help.

How Often Do Fleet Vehicles Need to be Serviced?

If you have a mix of vehicles in your fleet, you will likely find that they have different service intervals. This is mainly down to how often they are used, where they are used, and their age.

HGVs

As a general rule, HGVs must be serviced every four to 13 weeks. They require maintenance and inspections more frequently than cars due to the nature in which they are used. HGVs typically drive long miles and carry heavy loads, so they need to be serviced on a regular basis. In order to ensure your vehicles are safe to drive and are remaining compliant, fleet managers are encouraged to set up a vehicle maintenance schedule that all relevant people within the business can access.

Vans

Van servicing is similar to cars in that it must occur once a year as a general rule of thumb, although they can be serviced more frequently if they often travel long distances. This is to ensure any issues are picked up quickly before they become a major issue.

PSVs

Like HGVs, PSVs such as minibuses must be serviced regularly. 10 to 12 weeks is a general guide for PSV servicing; if the vehicle is older than 12 years old, then this interval is reduced to six weeks.

Forklift Trucks

Even if your forklift is not used on public roads, it must still be serviced to remain compliant with various regulations. Depending on the type of forklifts in your fleet, they must be serviced every two months (IC forklift), four months (electric forklift), and every four to 12 months for additional parts. A Thorough Examination is required every 12 months, like an MOT.

How Can I Schedule My Fleet Services?

Scheduling servicing for your fleet vehicles can be difficult, especially if you have a combination of vehicles at different ages with various needs in terms of maintenance. Therefore, it is essential that you keep a schedule of all your vehicle’s upcoming maintenance, service and MOT dates.

Using a paper schedule can be difficult to keep track of and access, making communication between mechanics, drivers and fleet managers difficult. Paper checklists and notes can also become easily damaged or lost, making servicing harder to keep track of. Using a digital fleet management software can help you keep a better eye on your servicing dates on a secure system that everyone can access.

With our maintenance scheduling system at AssetGo, you can even have alerts sent directly to your app to remind you of upcoming maintenance, so you can prepare your vehicles for their service or MOT. You can even view your driver’s daily checks to see if any elements of your vehicles need immediate attention.

You can find out more about our fleet management software by requesting a free demo.

What Other Maintenance Can Be Carried Out Alongside Servicing?

As well as servicing, fleet vehicles such as HGVs, PSVs, vans and forklift trucks can benefit from daily checks. Although they are simply a recommendation for vans, they are a legal requirement for commercial vehicles, and regular maintenance is essential for forklifts under the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER).

Daily checks are carried out by the driver of the vehicle; important elements such as the brakes, lights and tyres are checked during a daily walkaround check, and any issues are reported to the relevant person within the company. If an HGV has a trailer attached, this should be checked too. You can find out more about our digital daily checklists in our advice centre here.

Preventive Maintenance Inspections (PMIs), also known as Periodic Maintenance Inspections or Preventative Maintenance Inspections, should also be carried out on HGVs and PSVs, and are often carried out every few weeks depending on the type of vehicle, its age and how many miles it carries out in a year. They can be carried out at an external garage or in-house, and they take place to find any potential hazards before they become a major issue. You can find out more about preventative maintenance inspections in our advice centre.

Why is Servicing Important?

Servicing can improve safety on the road, both for drivers and other road users. HGVs are large vehicles that can cause significant damage on the roads if they are not fit for use, which is why they must be serviced and inspected regularly. Servicing can also reduce running and major maintenance costs, and can extend the lifespan of your vehicle and improve fleet safety.

The likelihood of breakdowns can be reduced by carrying out regular servicing, which can in turn reduce vehicle downtime within your company. Regular maintenance and servicing can also improve employee satisfaction, with the assurance that they are in safe hands when driving their vehicle. Maintenance and servicing are required for most HGV and PSV compliance regulations, so you can also ensure you aren’t breaking any codes.

How Can Fleet Management Software Help Me?

By choosing fleet management software at AssetGo, you can set reminders to help you keep on top of your servicing and fleet maintenance, as well as create an easy-to-access schedule that relevant people within your business can view. Mechanics and drivers can also add time-stamped notes when a defect is found, ensuring your vehicle is repaired to reduce downtime.

To find out more, get in touch with a member of our team today.

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