Feature guideSolo+

DVSA walkaround checks

The DVSA daily walkaround, done on the driver's phone.

Drivers work through the DVSA sheet for their vehicle in the WTNcloud app, flag anything wrong and sign it off, with or without signal. You see every check from the office, a dangerous defect marks the vehicle off the road until it's fixed, and each check prints as a record ready for a DVSA visit.

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Included from Solo+ upwards.

The Walkaround checks page on a computer: walkaround checks switched on, a filter for VOR — open dangerous defects (1), and seven recent checks across four vehicles marked All clear, VOR — dangerous defect, Defects raised, or Defects rectified 1/1, each with the driver's name and time.
A walkaround check for GW23 TPR in the WTNcloud app, open at Tyres & wheels: the nearside front tyre is marked dangerous with the note “Deep cut in the near side front sidewall, cords showing”, and the other tyre and wheel lines are ticked OK.

What every check records

Each check is the whole DVSA sheet for that vehicle, filled in and signed. It's kept with the vehicle, so its history builds up check by check.

  • The vehicle's sheetHGV (rigid), HGV with trailer, or light commercial, chosen per vehicle.
  • Every itemEach line marked OK, defect, dangerous or not applicable, in walk-round order.
  • DefectsWhat's wrong and how serious it is: minor, major or dangerous.
  • OdometerThe reading when the check was done.
  • Driver's signatureWho did the check, signed on the screen, with the date and time.
  • The repairWhat was done, who did it, and who signed the vehicle off as roadworthy.
  • Earlier defectsMinor and major defects still open from earlier checks of the same vehicle.
  • A printable recordEach check lays out as one record to print or save as a PDF.

Step by step

How it works

  1. Step 1: Choose which vehicles get a daily check

    Open a vehicle from Vehicles and choose its sheet under Daily walkaround check: HGV (rigid) for skip lorries, tippers and RoRos, HGV with trailer, or light commercial for vans up to 3.5 tonnes.

    When you add a flatbed, tipper, skip lorry, tanker or roll-on/roll-off, it starts on the HGV (rigid) sheet. Vans start with checks off, so you decide whether to track them.

    • The trailer sheet adds five coupling checks, from the fifth wheel to the trailer's number plate.
    • Each vehicle's page lists its recent checks and shows when it's off the road.
    A vehicle's page for GW23 TPR: Daily walkaround check set to HGV (rigid) — skip lorry, tipper, RoRo, and below it the vehicle's two recent walkaround checks with 1 open VOR, one with a defect and one with its defect rectified.

  2. Step 2: Your driver does the check on their phone

    In the WTNcloud app, drivers open the Walkaround tab and tap + Walkaround. They pick the vehicle, add the odometer reading, and the DVSA sheet for that vehicle opens with every line ticked OK, so they only mark what isn't.

    No signal at the yard? It doesn't matter. The check is saved on the phone and uploads when it's back online.

    • A driver's own name is filled in for them.
    • You can do a check from the app yourself too: tap More, then Walkaround.
    • Drivers can also sign in on the web and do the same check in a browser.
    The Walkaround tab in the WTNcloud app for driver Dan Hughes: recent checks of GW19 ART and GW23 TPR marked OK or Defects, with a green + Walkaround button and the Walkaround tab in the bar at the bottom.
    Starting a new walkaround in the app: three vehicles to pick from with GW23 TPR, a DAF CF 330 Tipper, selected, the driver's name Dan Hughes already filled in, an odometer reading of 184322 km and a Start walkaround button.

  3. Step 3: Flag a defect, sign and submit

    Marking a line as a defect or dangerous opens a note for the workshop: how serious it is, from minor to dangerous, and what's wrong.

    A dangerous defect marks the vehicle VOR, vehicle off road. When the walkaround is done, the driver signs with a finger and taps Complete walkaround.

    The Record defect sheet in the app for the nearside front tyre: severity set to DANGEROUS rather than minor or major, and the description “Deep cut in the near side front sidewall, cords showing. Vehicle parked up at the yard.”
    The end of the walkaround in the app: the last body and load lines ticked OK, the final odometer reading, an empty driver notes box, the driver's signature captured with a Sign again link, and a green Complete walkaround button.

  4. Step 4: See the day's checks from the office

    Walkarounds on your dashboard lists every check with its result: all clear, defects raised, defects rectified, or VOR. One click filters it down to the vehicles off the road.

    Your dashboard's Walkaround compliance today card counts the vehicles off the road, the checks done today and the vehicles still missing today's check. Your notifications also tell you when a vehicle is off the road.

    • Office logins can do a check on the web with New check, and add up to five photos to each defect.
    The dashboard's notifications, led by “1 vehicle off the road — A dangerous defect is unrectified”, above the Walkaround compliance today card: 1 VOR vehicle with an open dangerous defect, 3 checks done today, and 1 vehicle missing today's check.

  5. Step 5: Send the defect to be fixed

    Open the completed check and each open defect has two buttons. Job card lays out a sheet for whoever does the repair, with a QR code they scan to record the work online. Send by email emails them a link instead. They don't need a WTNcloud account.

    If the work was done in-house, choose Rectify and record it yourself: what was done, who did it, and the name and signature of the person signing the vehicle off as roadworthy.

    A completed check for GW23 TPR marked VOR: the nearside front tyre flagged DANGEROUS with its description, the odometer reading of 184,322 km, the open defect with Job card and Rectify buttons, and Dan Hughes's signature and signing time.
    The defect job card for GW23 TPR with Send by email and Print buttons: vehicle, odometer, who reported it and when, DANGEROUS severity, the defect description, a QR code to submit the works done online, and a paper sign-off section for the fitter.
    Scan the code with your phone, or press Try me, to try the fitter's form. It's an example, so nothing you enter is sent.

  6. Step 6: The fitter signs the repair off

    The link opens on the fitter's phone, showing the defect. They describe the work, can add up to five photos of the invoice or the new part, type their name and sign.

    Their sign-off lands on your walkaround record. Once no dangerous defect is left open on the check, the vehicle is no longer VOR.

    • Links last 30 days, and sending the email again sends a fresh link.
    • Minor and major defects nobody has fixed yet are carried onto the record of each later check of that vehicle, so they don't get forgotten.
    A check's record after the repair: a MAJOR wiper blade defect marked Rectified, with the work done, carried out by Leeds Truck & Van Repairs Ltd, signed off as roadworthy by Martin Cole with a signature, above the driver's own sign-off.
    The fitter's form in Safari on an iPhone: Greenway Waste Services Ltd, Defect on GW23 TPR reported by Dan Hughes with the dangerous tyre description, and Record works done filled in with the replacement tyre, Leeds Truck & Van Repairs Ltd, and Martin Cole as the person signing off.

  7. Step 7: Print the record when DVSA asks

    Every completed check has a Print button that lays it out as one record: your company, the vehicle, driver and odometer, every line of the sheet, the defects raised, any still open from earlier checks, and the driver's signed declaration.

    Print it for your audit folder or save it as a PDF. Its footer says to keep it for 15 months, citing DVSA's Guide to Maintaining Roadworthiness.

    • A completed check can't be deleted.
    The top of a printable walkaround record for GW72 SKP: Greenway Waste Services Ltd, record reference and print date, the vehicle, template, driver Priya Shah, odometer, start and finish times, and the exterior walk-round lines each marked OK.
    The end of the same printed record: no defects raised on this check, a minor cracked marker lamp lens still open from the previous day's check, and the driver's signed declaration with the date, above a reminder to keep the record for 15 months.

Everyone does their part where they are

One record per check, whoever touches it and on whatever screen.

  • In the app

    The Walkaround tab: pick the vehicle, flag defects, sign. Works with no signal.

    For drivers

  • In a browser

    The same check on the web, with photos on anything flagged.

    For drivers without the app

  • On the dashboard

    Every check, the vehicles off the road, job cards, repairs and printouts.

    For owners and office staff

  • From a link

    Record the repair and sign the vehicle off as roadworthy. No account needed.

    For fitters and garages

Questions

Answered from how the product actually behaves.

Which walkaround sheets are there?

Three, following DVSA's walkaround guidance. HGV (rigid) has 31 checks, for skip lorries, tippers, RoRos and other rigid vehicles. HGV with trailer adds five coupling checks. Light commercial has 21 checks, for vans up to 3.5 tonnes. You choose the sheet for each vehicle.

Does it work with no signal?

Yes, in the WTNcloud app. The whole check, including defects and the signature, is saved on the phone and uploads when the phone is back online. Checks done in a web browser need a connection.

What happens when a driver finds a dangerous defect?

The vehicle is marked VOR, vehicle off road. It shows on the check, in the VOR filter on the Walkarounds page, on your dashboard's compliance card and in your notifications. It stays VOR until the defect is signed off as rectified, by you or by the fitter from their link.

Does the fitter or garage need an account?

No. They scan the QR code on the job card or open the link you email them, record the work, and sign the vehicle off as roadworthy on their phone. Links last 30 days.

What if a minor defect isn't fixed straight away?

Minor and major defects that are still open are carried onto the record of each later check of the same vehicle, marked with the date they were first raised, and onto its printout too. Rectifying from any of those checks closes the original defect.

Can drivers add photos of a defect?

Yes, when the check is done in a web browser: on the dashboard, or by a driver signed in on the web. In the app, drivers record the defect's severity and description. Fitters can add photos when they sign a repair off.

Can I switch walkaround checks off?

Yes. Use the switch at the top of the Walkarounds page, under Settings → Company, or in the app's Settings. It hides walkarounds for you and every driver on your account, and your existing checks are kept. Switch it back on at any time.

What happens to my checks if I change plan?

If your plan no longer includes walkaround checks, you can't start new ones, but every check you've already done stays available to view and print.

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