Guidance

The Guild of British Coach Operators audit standards: DVSA earned recognition

Updated 26 September 2024

Applies to England, Scotland and Wales

Introduction

This document details the standards of the scheme, the assessment and evidence required during an audit to attain The Guild of British Coach Operators module status.

It is a public document and allows both the operator and the auditor to identify the areas where standards are being fully met, part met where shortcomings need to be addressed, or not met.

This module allows an operator to apply for membership to the guild, or renewal of their existing membership. Further liaison between the operator and The Guild of British Coach operators is required to complete the application or renewal of membership.

Each of the applicable standards must be attained to meet the overall criteria and the operator should be able to demonstrate full and effective control in all cases. It is not possible to be entirely prescriptive in all cases, as each operator must be considered individually.

It is up to the operator to demonstrate that the systems they have in place satisfy the required standards. The auditor must have a thorough understanding of the requirements and document clear evidence of the standard being met.

Important note

To meet the requirements set out in The Guild of British Coach Operators terms and conditions, an audit is required in addition to the mandatory DVSA earned recognition standards audit. Operators need to have met the version of the public service vehicles (PSV) standards on GOV.UK at the time of their periodic audit.

The operator must satisfy all the applicable standards in sections 1 to 10 of the PSV earned recognition standards in an audit. Once they have done this, they can choose to meet the additional requirements in this optional module. Once the operator has submitted an application form to DVSA, DVSA will forward the operator’s details to The Guild of British Coach Operators. The Guild will carry out financial checks on the operator. Operators that pass the checks can then have an audit for this module.

Meet standards for individual licences or operating centres

As this is an optional module, operators can choose to apply these additional requirements to an individual operator licence or the entire entity which is part of the DVSA earned recognition accreditation. This would include all the associated specified vehicles on the selected licences applying for this module, rather than all the entities and licences in the DVSA earned recognition accreditation.

The DVSA earned recognition accreditation published list of accredited operators will clearly identify the status of the operator licences or operating centres that have achieved the standards required for The Guild of British Coach Operators module, in addition to the DVSA earned recognition accreditation.

When to apply for a DVSA earned recognition module audit

This module will need to be audited every 2 years. Reaccreditation can take place no earlier than 10 weeks before the anniversary date of the module being awarded and no later than 2 weeks before. This allows an 8-week window in which to achieve the reaccreditation.

Example

Accreditation is awarded 23 June 2022 with an expiry date of 23 June 2024. The earliest date the reaccreditation audit can take place is 14 April 2024 (10 weeks prior), but the audit must be completed by 9 June 2024 (2 weeks in advance of expiry date).

If reaccreditation is carried out earlier than the 10 weeks prior to the anniversary date the operator will forfeit the original accreditation date and a new certificate will be awarded with an expiry date 24 months from the new accreditation date.

Example

Accreditation is awarded 23 June 2022 with an expiry date of 23 June 2024. Reaccreditation takes place 26 March 2024 (over 10 weeks prior to expiry). The new expiry date will be 26 March 2026.

We advise operators to discuss any changes that may affect their earned recognition accreditation status with the DVSA earned recognition team, as it could be more cost effective to bring the periodic audit forward to combine with an application for this module.

Operators will need to inform the authorised audit provider of their intention to request membership to The Guild of British Coach Operators to ensure the appropriate audit sections are complete.

Once the audit has been successfully completed, DVSA will notify the applicant of the accreditation status of each licence or operating centre in the application.

The operator’s DVSA earned recognition and module accreditation status will be published on GOV.UK and will be listed alongside their operator licence name and number. This will be aligned to the operator licence number displayed on their operator licence disc, which is displayed on the vehicle’s windscreen.

Using the standards

Unless specifically stated, the standards apply to the whole operation under the relevant operator licences. In some places the standards deliberately refer to “coaches” to exclude buses and bus drivers.

“Next working day” means by the close of normal business hours on that day, where normal business hours are 9am to 5pm.

Most standards require the auditor to look back over the previous 2 years. New applicants may not have been fully compliant in the preceding 2 years (as they were not subject to these standards over that period), but they should demonstrate that their systems and procedures are compliant by the time that the audit takes place.

1. Customer service standards

Subsection	Assessment criteria	Evidence requirement
1.1	Ensure the descriptions of coaches used on the operator’s website, in quotations, contracts, brochures and other material are open, honest, and explicit and are of actual vehicles in their current fleet.	Auditor to view website before audit visit. Any description of fleet including facilities must be validated by reference to the actual fleet. Operator must produce samples of all advertising literature for private hire for inspection. Demonstrate how these match current vehicles in the fleet. Operator must produce samples of all advertising literature for holidays and excursions for inspection if they offer these services. Demonstrate how these match current vehicles in the fleet.
1.2	The operator provides a point of booking for customers that is open during normal business hours and is staffed by someone competent to deal with coach hire enquiries.	Auditor to meet relevant staff members, such as bookings team, to discuss the process and understanding of the booking procedure from quote to confirmation of booking.
1.3	Where it is not possible to provide immediate quotes, the operator must forward a response in writing no later than the next working day after the enquiry.	The operator must demonstrate the system they use to log and respond to enquiries. The operator must provide a quote within 24 hours of an enquiry and a confirmation within 48 hours. Auditor must evidence and sample a selection of quotations and associated enquiry details from the previous 12 months. Give details as an example.
1.4	The operator must ensure all bookings are confirmed in writing by email or other electronic means no later than the next working day after being made.	The operator must demonstrate the system used to log bookings and the process for issuing confirmation. Give details of the process and system they use. Auditor to select at random and examine a sufficient sample of quotations from the previous 12 months.
1.5	Once accepted and confirmed by the hirer, cancellations of bookings only occur in cases of non-payment and then only in accordance with the operator’s terms and conditions.	Discuss the process and give details. Give examples of a minimum of 2 cancelled bookings.

2. The journey

Subsection	Assessment criteria	Evidence requirement
2.1	The driver’s instructions for a journey must be an accurate reflection of the detailed itinerary supplied to and agreed with the client.	Auditor will select at random and examine a minimum of 10 bookings (dependent on the size of the operation) from the previous 12 months and cross-reference to drivers work sheets. Give details of findings.
2.2	The operator must have a process in place to ensure there is a 24-hour back-up system for vehicles and drivers during any period when a vehicle and driver are in use. This must include clients being supplied with a 24-hour emergency number to a contact within the operation who has full responsibility and authority to take whatever action is appropriate.	Discuss with relevant staff and give details of the process in place that ensures there is a 24-hour contingency plan in place for both vehicles and drivers. How are customers made aware of the emergency contact number on both private hire and holiday bookings? Give an example of the process in action, covering details such as what the incident was, how it was resolved, who was on call, and if the issue was dealt with in both a satisfactory and timely manner.
2.3	Drivers and couriers are instructed to make appropriate safety and customer service announcements at the commencement of any hire once all passengers have boarded.	Give evidence of the written instructions or a policy setting out when safety announcements are to be made. Give overview of the details set out. Give evidence of training records, including the format of the training (such as toolbox talk, memo, or Certificate of Professional Competence) and details of when last training took place.

3. Terms and conditions

Subsection	Assessment criteria	Evidence requirement
3.1	Terms and conditions are published and made available to hirers on request in advance of booking.	The operator must make terms and conditions available to the auditor. Give evidence of how and where these are published. How are they made available to customers? For example, attached to booking confirmations, posted or sent electronically. Give details.
3.2	The operator has a policy in place comprising of the Guild Charter. The conditions of hire guarantee the following points to clients: 1. A punctual pick up 2. A fully functional coach 3. A 24-hour emergency back-up 4. Courtesy and a prompt reply to enquiries 5. Concise terms of hiring in writing 6. Written or emailed confirmation of bookings 7. Once accepted, bookings will not be cancelled, except in case of non-payment or other breach 8. Uniformed drivers	Give details of the policy including the review date, name of policy and who controls the policy. Give evidence that each bullet point in the assessment criteria section is covered. Make notes of any additional conditions of hire added.

4. DBS checks

Subsection	Assessment criteria	Evidence requirement
4.1	The operator must have a register of drivers who have been cleared through Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks for use on work where such checks are required.	Give details of the process used to ensure drivers requiring DBS checks are assigned to journeys when allocating work, for example to school hires, so that only DBS cleared drivers are allocated to work where this is required by the client.

5. Presentation

Subsection	Assessment criteria	Evidence requirement
5.1	The operator has a policy in place in relation to the dress code whilst on duty, which requires all staff employed directly in coach operations with regular face to face contact with clients, drivers and couriers to be fully uniformed and all additional staff such as travel and office staff who have regular contact with customers to either be uniformed or to wear business attire.	The operator must produce a copy of the dress code for inspection and give evidence that it is applied, for example a written instruction to drivers and other staff members. How is compliance with the policy monitored? What are the consequences of not adhering to the written instructions? How are the written instructions distributed to staff? Confirm they have been signed as read and understood. Auditor should ensure that staff they see during the audit visit are wearing appropriate uniform in line with the operator’s policy.

6. Management control

Subsection	Assessment criteria	Evidence requirement
6.1	Any Transport Manager Certificate of Professional Competence (CPC) holders nominated on the operator licence are familiar with and abide by the guidelines of the Guild of British Coach Operators Quality Standards and Charter and, where applicable, the Coach Marque scheme.	The auditor must meet and question the CPC holder, who will be expected to demonstrate ready awareness of the relevant guidelines and principles. Where the operator has 2 CPC holders, the auditor should speak to both, especially if duties are split between them. In the event that the CPC holder is off sick, the auditor must conduct a telephone interview before signing off on this point.

7. Engineering standards

Subsection	Assessment criteria	Evidence requirement
7.1	In addition to the standard vehicle walkaround checks, the correct functioning of any facilities specified by the client as listed on the work ticket or driver instructions is to be included. The work ticket is a mirror copy of the client’s confirmation, confirming additional facilities required such as video usage.	Operator to demonstrate how additional facilities required are identified from bookings and added to work tickets or driver instructions. Are facilities requested by a customer added to a digital walkaround check or added to a work sheet handed to the driver before the journey? Give details and examples. What process is in place to ensure the checks are undertaken by drivers? Give details.
7.2	In the event of a vehicle shortfall, substitute vehicles are to at least the same standard as contracted for by the client, with the sole exception of the case of the emergency recovery of passengers following a breakdown or incident. If work is subcontracted to another operator, the client must be informed of this before the hire commences.	Give details of the process used to ensure substitute vehicles are of the same standard as contracted by the client. Is work subcontracted to cope with peak period? Give details. Evidence and review a minimum of 5 such situations selected randomly over the previous 2 years for subcontracted work. Give details. Give details of how clients were informed of the work being subcontracted prior to the hire commencing.
7.3	A policy and process are in place in relation to the system used to ensure that all coaches are cleaned and presented in the highest standards achievable for every hire, with any facilities specified by the client in working order. The operator will demonstrate to the auditor that they have the necessary cleaning facilities and equipment. Ensure the system is evidenced by recorded quality assurance checks on a random selection of 10% of hires per month.	Give details of the policy including the review date, name of policy and who controls the policy. Overview of content - evidence the written procedure which details the system in place. How do facilities specified by customers appear on work sheets to ensure they are clean and in working order? Auditor to view a varied and sufficient sample of coaches chosen at random to check for cleanliness. Depending on the size of the operator’s fleet, this should be a minimum of 4 and a maximum of 10 coaches. Is the cleaning undertaken by an on-site cleaning team, do drivers clean vehicles themselves or is the cleaning outsourced? Give details. Auditor to view cleaning equipment available at the depot and carried on coaches. Give details. Operator to produce evidence of quality checks that have been undertaken, to include frequency and findings of the cleaning which has been conducted. Give details.
7.4	For operators who are also members of the Coach Marque scheme, Coach Marque vinyls are affixed only to coaches of 10 years or less age and are affixed in the required positions.	Auditor to view a representative sample of coaches to ensure stickers are on the vehicles that meet the age criteria of 10 years or less.

8. Regulatory compliance

Subsection	Assessment criteria	Evidence requirement
8.1	Where package holidays are sold or other similar products covered by The Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018, the operator must provide evidence that the required bonding or trust fund arrangements are in place. The regulations refer to the pre-arranged combination of at least 2 of: transport, accommodation, or other tourist services accounting for a significant proportion of the package.	Auditor to view website before audit visit to identify what packages the company offers and examine sales brochures and other material to see whether packages are sold. If the operator sells packages, give details of the method used to ensure compliance with the regulations and produce evidence, such as original certificates from ABTA or the Bonded Coach Holidays (BCH) scheme. Auditor to take copies of certificates provided and attach to the audit report.

9. Environmental policy

Subsection	Assessment criteria	Evidence requirement
9.1	The operator’s environmental policy is in line with current legislation covering aspects of coach operation, including the disposal of litter, oil and other fluids and the discharge of chemical toilets. Can be in conjunction with section 3.12 sustainability and environmental management policy of the PSV audit standards - check for elements specific to coaches.	Operator to produce copy of the environmental policy. Auditor to look for provisions in the policy that are specific to coach operations (such as toilet drop risk assessments) and how they are enforced. Give details of additional content in the policy.

10. Financial stability

The auditor does not need to check this section.

The Guild of British Coach Operators will check the criteria in this section before the audit is conducted.

Subsection	Assessment criteria	Evidence requirement
10.1	The operator has achieved a higher level of shareholder funds on average over the past 6 annual reporting periods.	This element will be checked by The Guild of British Coach Operators when an application to complete the module has been received, and prior to the audit being conducted.
10.2	The operator’s latest annual accounts are not qualified or subject to a “matter of emphasis” clause, for example where there are doubts about the feasibility to run the business from a financial perspective (also known as ‘going concern status’).	This element will be checked by The Guild of British Coach Operators when an application to complete the module has been received, and prior to the audit being conducted.