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Does your business own vehicles? This may be a car for getting around, trucks for shipping goods or heavy equipment for construction. If you have commercial vehicles, you need a plan to maintain them. Using a vehicle inspection checklist is one of the simplest and most effective ways to keep your wheeled investments in working order.
As the name suggests, these checklists are used to ensure that all necessary maintenance tasks are performed during a vehicle inspection. Typically, such a checklist is used by the owner of the vehicle. Mechanics performing regulatory inspections also have relevant checklists.
The goal of a vehicle inspection checklist is to identify any mechanical issues or other problems that could cause accidents or downtime before they become issues. For example, most checklists involve checking the brakes periodically.
This should be an element of upkeep for all vehicles. Mechanics and service departments at dealers use their own inspection checklists. However, owners, especially commercial vehicle owners, should be doing their own inspections on a more regular basis.
The main purpose of inspection checklists is simple. These documents are intended to help anyone performing an inspection to stay organized. There are other significant benefits of conducting regular inspections using a checklist:
In short, if your business uses vehicles of any sort, you likely need to use a truck or car inspection checklist. Most organizations can benefit from a few different inspection checklists. For example, you may have a daily pre-use checklist that is very short along with a monthly, quarterly or yearly checklist for more in-depth maintenance needs. Finally, there may be other items that can be checked more intermittently.
Perhaps as important as the checklist itself is storing the results. By doing this in an organized and easily accessible manner, you can get a full history of vehicle maintenance. Not only does this make predicting issues easier, but it also can increase the resale value of your equipment.
The contents of your inspection checklist depend on the vehicle. Additionally, there are a variety of types of inspections that your organization may perform at different times. For example, you may have your drivers perform a daily inspection. This can include checking major safety equipment for any obvious issues.
You may also order a maintenance inspection by a mechanic or specialist, along with a basic tune-up including fluids and filters. The scheduling of these inspections depends on how heavily you use the vehicle. Finally, you may need an annual or less-regular inspection that checks for regulatory compliance to get or renew official certification. This can also include checking components in a more in-depth manner.
The following are some of the items that are often on maintenance checklists:
If you own business vehicles, there is no reason not to have an inspection checklist. Even if you bring your vehicle to an outside mechanic or service department regularly, it is a good idea to have the internal ability to check that the vehicle is in good shape.
You don’t need to have a company motor pool or a staff mechanic to inspect vehicles. Anyone who is driving should be able to at least check fluid levels and inspect lights and tires. For example, your checklist may be to check the engine oil, honk the horn, test the lights, listen for weird noises and give the vehicle a quick looking over. A list as simple as this can help to save your business significant money in the long run by catching problems before they worsen.
Beyond the maintenance benefits, checklists also instill a safety mindset in vehicle operators. Asking them to perform periodic inspections reminds them of the importance of taking good care of the equipment.
Vehicle inspection checklists are one of many types of documents that can help your business run more smoothly. Keep your document workflows organized and efficient using Fluix. Automate your workflows, improve, data quality and make sure your checklists are completed on time and filed properly.