Third party MOT QC checks for small garages and single tester sites around Blackpool, Preston, Lancaster and the Fylde coast
Every Authorised Examiner has to run a quality management system, and part of that is having someone competent check the testers. For a small garage that is easier said than done. If you have one tester, there is nobody to check him. If you have two, they end up checking each other, which DVSA can see straight through.
WS MOT Services carries out those quality control checks for you, independently, as a third party. We are a small independent business rather than an agency, based on the Fylde coast and covering garages across Lancashire and the North West.
The MOT testing guide puts the responsibility on the AE. Quality control checks must be "carried out by a competent person who has the appropriate knowledge, skills and experience to assess MOT testing standards". The guide sets out several ways of meeting that, including an assurance approach "which could include a third party or trade representative", and expects "1 per tester every 2 months" as a typical frequency. The result of every check "must be recorded, including any agreed action".
Where a test station has a single tester, the guide expects the AE to have a suitable means of assuring the quality of testing, and names using a third party assessor as one of them. That is exactly what this service is.
About an hour to an hour and a half at a one or two tester site, booked in advance and worked round your diary.
An observed test per tester. Watched right through, from the vehicle coming in to the result being confirmed.
A review of your test quality information. Fail rates against the site and national figures, test durations, component failures, and anything that does not sit right against the booking diary.
A records check. Equipment calibration, tester annual training and assessment, and MOT testing service security.
Face to face feedback. To each tester, and to you.
A written report by email. The result of the check and the agreed action, signed and dated, emailed to you within 24 hours and ready to go straight into your quality management file.
If something comes up that needs digging into, we will say so on the day and agree with you what happens next. A full re-examination can be arranged separately where it is warranted.
With your permission we can be added in the MOT testing service as an Authorised Examiner Consultant. The AEC role is assigned by your AEDM or AED and it is view only. It cannot buy slots, start tests or assign roles. What it does give is sight of your test logs, your test quality information and your testers' annual assessment records, so we arrive already knowing which tester needs the closer look, and we can keep an eye on things between visits rather than only on the day. You can remove the role at any time.
We are based on the Fylde coast, so the regular patch is Blackpool, Poulton-le-Fylde, Fleetwood, Thornton Cleveleys, Lytham St Annes and Kirkham, across to Preston, Leyland and Chorley, and out to Garstang, Lancaster and Blackburn. For most Lancashire garages we are a short run rather than half a morning, which is why there is no travel or subsistence added to your invoice. Further into the North West is worth asking about and we will tell you honestly whether it works.
A practising tester, not a trainer. Over forty years in the motor trade, twenty of them as a Master Technician with Peugeot, currently testing Class 4, 5 and 7, and a qualified high voltage technician for electric and hybrid vehicles.
Properly qualified. IMI Level 3 Award in MOT Test Centre Management, the qualification DVSA requires of an Authorised Examiner Designated Manager, and a basic DBS certificate held.
You deal with one person. The same person who does the checks, every visit. Not a booking office and not a different face each time.
Every two months, as DVSA expects. Not one visit a year to tick a box.
Genuinely independent. We will not carry out QC checks at a garage we also do relief MOT testing for. A check is only worth having if the person doing it has no stake in the result.
We are also qualified to act as an Authorised Examiner Designated Manager. That is a serious responsibility, so we take it on only for small sites, and only where we are not already your QC checker. If you are stuck without a manager it is worth a conversation.
What is an MOT quality control check? It is part of the quality management system every Authorised Examiner has to run. A competent person watches a tester carry out a full MOT, reviews how the site is testing, and records the result along with any action agreed. It is how an AE satisfies itself, and DVSA, that testing is being done to standard.
How often do MOT QC checks need doing? The MOT testing guide gives one check per tester every two months as a typical frequency, varied to reflect test volumes and any special circumstances. Where a lot of problems are found, checks are expected to become more frequent until the issue is sorted.
Can a third party carry out our quality control checks? Yes. The guide lists an assurance approach that could include a third party or trade representative, and the Authorised Examiner Consultant role exists in the MOT testing service for exactly that purpose.
We only have one tester. What are we supposed to do? This is the problem the service was built for. A single tester site cannot check itself, and the guide expects a suitable means of assuring quality, naming a third party assessor as one option. We come in, observe the test, and the written report follows by email.
What is an Authorised Examiner Consultant? A view only role in the MOT testing service, assigned by your AEDM or AED, which lets an outside person see test logs, test quality information and tester assessment records. It cannot start tests, buy slots or change anyone's roles, and you can remove it whenever you like.
Do we have to give you access to our MOT testing service account? The Authorised Examiner Consultant role is how the service works best, and it is view only, assigned by you and removable by you at any time. If it is a problem for your business, ring me and we will talk it through.
Will you help us get ready for a DVSA site visit? Yes, that can be arranged as a separate visit, going through equipment, records, premises and testing patterns the way a DVSA site review would.
How is it charged? As a plan, so the two monthly cycle looks after itself and you are not booking each visit from scratch. Tell us how many testers you have and where you are and we will give you a fixed monthly price.
WS MOT Services sits alongside WS Logistics under WS Group, both serving the motor trade and both run by the same person. As well as QC checks we provide relief MOT testing for garages across Lancashire, and if you need vehicles collecting or delivering, have a look at our vehicle transport services.
Want a look at where your testing stands? We will run a free review of your test quality information before you commit to anything. Email ws-motservices@outlook.com or call 07385 672501. WS MOT Services, part of WS Group.
