Ask the MAC

Hold up, Santa!

Q. One of our drivers has decided to grow out their facial hair, meaning they now have a large beard. The photograph on their driving licence does not show this, do they need to update the photograph on their driving licence?   

A. There is no legislative requirement to update the photograph with changes to things such as facial hair, however if the driver were to be stopped by enforcement officers and it was determined that the changes rendered the face totally unrecognisable, the driver may be requested to renew the photograph to reflect the updated likeness. 

Stand by your vehicles,... inspection time

Q: We currently have our vehicles inspected every six weeks, however due to the low mileage these vehicles are doing, we are exploring the possibility of changing the frequency to increase the time between inspections. What do we need to do to remain compliant?

A: When determining frequency of inspections, there are a couple of factors to consider, including the mileage of the vehicle, the age and type of work the vehicle is undertaking. Once these have been assessed and checked against the below table, found within the Guide to Maintaining Roadworthiness, it may be possible to alter the frequency.

A documented risk assessment and explanation to explain why the frequency has been adjusted, along with the new maintenance agreement with the updated inspection frequency, should be kept on file ready to be produced if ever asked by an enforcement officer. The Vehicle Operator Licence (VOL) system must also be updated with the new arrangements.

Once changed, this must be monitored to ensure that the changes have not had a detrimental impact on roadworthiness or an increase in the number of defects reported. The Guide to Maintaining Roadworthiness states: “If an unacceptable increase in defects were seen, then a change back to the original schedule would be necessary.”

Published On: 04/07/2024 15:00:00