Earned Recognition: 6 months on

As of 24th April 2018, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) confirmed Earned Recognition as ‘Business as Usual’. The scheme was launched by the DVSA so it could refocus its resources on the seriously and serially non-compliant. In return, operators recognised as ‘exemplary’, will receive fewer roadside checks, as well as a reduction in the associated cost and time that hauliers can lose during these stops.

To join, operators must first pass a compliance audit, which includes a set of key performance indicators (KPIs). They must also have IT systems in place for vehicle maintenance and drivers’ hours, that will monitor those KPIs and update the DVSA every four weeks. Automatic Registration-plate recognition (ANPR) will then be utilised to aid examiners in identifying whether or not an operator is on the scheme.

By modernising in this way, the DVSA has been able to take a more efficient and pragmatic approach to monitoring compliance. In turn, the organisation has been able to free up front-line resource and allow compliant transport operators to see a clear reduction in the impact on costs and end customers. Already in talks with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the Department for Transport (DfT) to look at how low emission zone enforcement can be incorporated, the DVSA is looking at ways to ensure Earned Recognition stays relevant and valuable.

Recent commentary has also suggested that the scheme could become the overarching national benchmark and Gold Standard for operator compliance, removing the need for transport operators to join alternative national and regional schemes. Whilst these schemes have the same goal, signing up for multiple programmes in different parts of the country can end up being a costly exercise for operators.

Intelligent Solutions

As a DVSA vaidated IT Supplier, Descartes works with the DVSA and operators to provide the KPIs required by Earned Recognition for tachograph data and the management of drivers’ hours through its SmartCompliance™ software. Descartes’ Smartanalysis™ is the industry’s leading tachograph analysis and reporting software, with more than 100 standard reports and KPIs configured specifically to meet Earned Recognition. Descartes has successfully supported a number of UK transport operators in achieving Earned Recognition status.

Early adopters of the Earned Recognition scheme have already seen the benefits of taking part. Staples Vegetables, for example, was the first organisation to sign up and has successfully deployed Descartes’ SmartCompliance™ software to ensure compliance across its fleet of 50 vehicles and 100 trailers. With Smartanalysis™, Staples Vegetables is able to proactively manage not only its transport operations but also individual drivers to take all reasonable steps to prevent drivers’ hours infringements and breaches of tachograph regulations. Moreover, in doing so, the company has increased efficiency and is minimising risk within its transport operations.

Click here to find out how Descartes Compliance Management solutions could help you.