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Two haulage firms have become the latest to join the DVSA’s earned recognition (ER) scheme after upgrading their systems to keep track of maintenance and compliance information.

ABE Ledbury and Somerset builders’ merchant CRS Building Supplies received the endorsement after demonstrating that their drivers and vehicles met the elevated standards of the scheme.

ABE said it had made a considerable investment in updating its systems and moving everything from paper to digital.

Jeff Pryce, ABE transport compliance manager, said: “By getting this accreditation, you are really putting your head above the parapet and making the business very transparent, but we knew that we already performed to a very high standard, so had nothing to worry about.”

ABE MD Clive Brooks (pictured) said there was a lot of work involved in gaining the ER status: “The level of detail we have to submit every four weeks is high, but it is a great way to prove our high standards are consistent,” he said.

“The DVSA’s scheme is in place to encourage operators to be the best of the best and that is exactly what Jeff and the team have been able to prove.”

CRS said it wasn’t looking to join the ER scheme initially, it just wanted a programme to run its assets on.

But after settling on the same management system as ABE, Truckfile, it realised all the data it would need to provide to the DVSA was already being recorded, so it applied to join up.

“We knew we were doing everything right in terms of compliance but the problem, previously, had been that we didn’t have a system in place to share the required information,” said CRS transport manager, Paul Gibbard.

“Sending the necessary updates to DVSA, to ensure our continuing earned recognition status, is now very straightforward."

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