Vehicle Inspection Standards and Procedures
Method before judgement
Inspection standards define what must be checked and the criteria that make a defect a pass, a minor defect, a major defect or a dangerous defect. Candidates must know the inspection sequence and why it is followed: identity and paperwork first, then a structured walk-around, then functional tests using approved equipment, then under-vehicle examination, then a final decision and documentation. The sequence exists so that nothing is omitted and so that results are reproducible between examiners and stations.
What must be assessed
Know the systems: identification and registration details, braking performance and balance, steering and suspension, tyres and wheels, lighting and signalling, glazing and mirrors, body structure and corrosion affecting safety, seat belts and restraints, exhaust emissions and noise, fuel and electrical systems, and speedometer and other instruments where required. Understand that defect classification drives the outcome: dangerous defects prohibit use, major defects require repair before a certificate is issued, minor defects are recorded and may allow a pass.
Evidence and measurement
Emphasise objective evidence: measured brake efficiency, tyre tread depth against the legal minimum, headlamp aim against the prescribed pattern, emissions readings against limits. Where measurement is required, an opinion is not enough. Where a test cannot be completed, the correct action is to refuse to certify and record why, not to pass on assumption.
Traps
Typical traps include passing a vehicle because the owner promises repairs will be done; classifying a dangerous defect as minor because the vehicle arrived under its own power; skipping a test because the equipment was unavailable; and confusing advisory notes with recorded defects. Another trap is inspecting a modified vehicle without checking whether the modification is permitted and whether the vehicle still meets the applicable standard.
Rule of thumb
If a defect affects the vehicle's safe operation or emissions and you cannot measure it, you cannot pass it. Record the defect, classify it at the highest defensible level, and refuse certification where the standard requires.
Worked example
A vehicle has tread below the legal minimum on one tyre and a cracked headlamp lens that still emits a correct beam pattern. The tread is a dangerous or major defect prohibiting certification until replaced; the lens is recorded according to its classification, and the certificate is withheld until the tread is rectified and re-inspected.