Roadside Vehicle Repair Risk Assessment Guide

A roadside vehicle repair risk assessment should begin with a go/no-go decision: can the work be completed safely at that location, or must the vehicle be recovered to a suitable workshop? If work can proceed, the assessment must address passing traffic, the road surface and camber, weather and visibility, vehicle stability, lifting and support, air suspension, tools, competence, supervision, communication and emergency arrangements.

The short answer

Do not treat every callout as a routine tyre change. Gather enough information before dispatch, then carry out a dynamic assessment on arrival. Move or recover the vehicle when the position, surface, traffic conditions, vehicle configuration or available equipment makes lifting or working beneath it unsafe. Where lifting is justified, use the correct lifting points and rated equipment, chock against movement and provide suitable secondary support. A jack or air suspension must never be the only thing protecting a person beneath a vehicle.

Why does this matter now?

On 4 November 2026, HSE reported that a commercial tyre service provider had been fined after a 21-year-old tyre fitter was killed while replacing a blown tyre on a low-profile truck at a motorway slip road. The truck slipped from the bottle jack being used to raise it and struck him while he was beneath it.

HSE found that the employer had not properly assessed the risks of replacing the tyre on that type of vehicle, had not provided suitable work instructions explaining when a truck should be recovered instead of repaired at the roadside, and had not adequately monitored or supervised the employee. The worker had held his roadside licence for fewer than four months. The company pleaded guilty to breaching section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

The prosecution did not create a new roadside-repair rule. It is a current example of existing duties failing at three connected points: the task-specific assessment, the recovery decision and the supervision of a relatively inexperienced technician.

What does the law require?

In Great Britain, section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 places a general duty on employers, so far as is reasonably practicable, to protect employees' health, safety and welfare. Regulation 3 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 requires a suitable and sufficient assessment of risks to employees and other people affected by the work.

Work equipment also needs to be suitable, maintained and used by people who have received adequate information, instruction and training under the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998. Where lifting equipment is used at work, the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 may apply. HSE summarises the LOLER duty by saying lifting operations must be properly planned by a competent person, appropriately supervised and carried out safely; equipment must be suitable, strong and stable, and subject to the required thorough examination.

Those are legal duties. HSE's roadside-repair and motor-vehicle-repair publications are guidance on applying them. HSE advises that roadside work creates additional, site-specific hazards and may require a dynamic assessment. It also says that in some circumstances towing the vehicle to a workshop will be safer than attempting a roadside repair.

A generic method statement can establish the normal system, equipment and limits. It cannot decide whether the verge is firm, the truck is safely positioned or the actual lifting point can be used. The technician still needs clear authority to stop and escalate when the conditions do not match the approved system.

When should the vehicle be recovered instead of repaired?

Define recovery triggers before technicians are exposed to commercial pressure at the roadside. The assessment should require recovery or relocation when the work cannot be completed within the organisation's safe system, including where:

the vehicle is in a live lane, dangerous bend, slip road or other position where an adequate work zone cannot be established;
the surface is soft, damaged, sloping or significantly cambered, or its bearing capacity is uncertain;
visibility, lighting, weather or traffic speed makes the site unsafe;
the vehicle is unstable, damaged, loaded unpredictably or positioned so the specified lifting points cannot be used;
the correct jack, stands, props, chocks or other equipment are not available or cannot be positioned safely;
the task would require a person to enter a crush zone without effective secondary support;
the air-suspension configuration or condition cannot be confirmed and controlled;
the technician is not competent or authorised for the vehicle, equipment or task;
the repair has changed materially from the information supplied at dispatch; or
the worker cannot maintain reliable communication or summon assistance.

The recovery decision must be operationally real. Give technicians a named escalation route, access to recovery support and protection from pressure to complete an unsafe roadside job. Record when recovery was chosen and why; a safe refusal is evidence that the control worked, not a failed repair.

What should be checked before dispatch?

The first assessment starts when the call is received. Collect enough information to send the right person and equipment and to identify a job that should go straight to recovery.

Vehicle: type, make or model, axle and suspension arrangement, approximate load, fault, tyre position and any collision or structural damage.
Location: road name and direction, lane or hard shoulder, nearby junction, gradient, verge or surface, and a precise location that emergency services or a recovery team can find.
Conditions: traffic, lighting, weather, visibility and any police, highway or site controls already in place.
People: driver and passenger location, vulnerable occupants, other contractors and who is controlling the scene.
Resources: technician competence, suitable service vehicle, lifting and supporting equipment, traffic-warning equipment, PPE, first-aid kit and reliable communication.

Do not let incomplete caller information become an assumption. Mark unknowns for confirmation on arrival, and tell the technician that dispatch is not authorisation to begin the repair.

What should the on-site assessment cover?

Stop in a position that does not create another hazard and assess the scene before unloading tools or approaching the damaged side of the vehicle. HSE's motor-vehicle-repair guidance identifies traffic conditions, weather, lighting, road surface and camber as matters to assess for roadside work.

The technician should record or confirm:

the safe position of the service vehicle and how it helps protect the work area;
traffic speed, direction, proximity and the warning or traffic-management measures in place;
space for the technician to work without entering a live traffic path;
surface strength, level and camber at every proposed jack, stand and wheel position;
vehicle brake, transmission, steering, wheel position, load and risk of rolling or shifting;
the manufacturer's lifting and support points for the specific vehicle;
overhead, underground, roadside and environmental hazards;
lighting, temperature, wind, rain, ice and other conditions that affect grip, visibility or stability;
how occupants and members of the public will be kept away from the repair zone; and
what will happen if conditions worsen or the repair cannot be completed.

A dynamic assessment does not mean an undocumented improvisation. It applies the trained system to changing conditions. Where the organisation uses an electronic or paper field record, keep it short enough to use but specific enough to show why the work proceeded or stopped.

How should lifting and support be controlled?

HSE identifies vehicles falling or rolling from incorrectly positioned jacks or stands as a main cause of fatal motor-repair accidents. Before lifting, confirm that the equipment is suitable for the load and task, within its rated capacity, inspected or examined as required and compatible with the vehicle's correct lifting point.

Use the manufacturer's information for lifting and supporting the vehicle. Chock wheels that remain on the ground, control possible vehicle movement and keep people outside the crush zone while lifting. The ground beneath a jack or stand must be firm, stable and suitable for the imposed load; a board or plate cannot turn an unsuitable roadside surface into a safe foundation unless the engineered method specifically establishes that it can.

Never rely on a hydraulic, pneumatic or mechanical jack as the sole support for a person beneath a vehicle. Position suitable rated stands, props or other secondary support before entering a danger zone. Do not use improvised pins, blocks or components. If the approved support cannot be installed, recover the vehicle.

The safe system should also cover wheel removal, stored energy, tyre inflation, seized fasteners, components that may move when unloaded and the effect of removing or replacing a heavy wheel on vehicle stability. Reassess after each material change rather than assuming the first lift remains safe throughout the task.

What about vehicles with air suspension?

HSE warns that air pressure can fall, automatic movement can occur and bellows can rupture or deflate, suddenly reducing clearance and creating a crushing risk. Air suspension must not be relied upon to maintain ride height while someone is in a place where they could be trapped.

Plan the job using the actual system configuration. Prevent suspension movement by fully deflating the system or using suitably rated props or stands as required by the safe method. Isolate lifting axles that can move unexpectedly. If work is on the suspension system, HSE says the system should be exhausted and physically isolated; clamping pipework is not secure isolation.

HSE's safety alert advises undertaking only minimal repair work at the roadside or a third-party site, with an adequately equipped repair facility being the best place for the work. Where the technician cannot confirm the system or establish safe support, the assessment should direct recovery.

How should competence, authorisation and supervision be managed?

A certificate or roadside licence is evidence of training or authorisation, not proof that a person can handle every vehicle and situation without support. Define which tasks a newly trained technician may undertake, which require remote or direct supervision and which need a more experienced person.

A competence system should include:

initial training in vehicle lifting, support, roadside traffic risk, dynamic assessment and stop-work decisions;
vehicle- and equipment-specific instruction, including low-profile vehicles and air suspension;
observed practical assessment before lone authorisation;
graduated authorisation for new or inexperienced technicians;
planned monitoring of roadside work, not only review after something goes wrong;
ready access to a competent supervisor during callouts;
periodic reassessment and response to unsafe acts, near misses or changes in equipment; and
records that show the limits of each person's current authorisation.

Supervision should reflect risk and experience. A telephone number alone is not adequate if the organisation never checks how the employee applies the method or if workers believe they will be criticised for requesting recovery.

What should the assessment record contain?

Keep the permanent task assessment and safe system separate from, but connected to, the callout record. The permanent documents should define minimum equipment, standard controls, competence, recovery criteria and emergency arrangements. The callout record should show how those controls applied at the actual location.

call reference, date, time and precise location;
vehicle identification, type, load and reported fault;
technician and current competence or authorisation level;
traffic, weather, lighting, surface and camber findings;
lifting points, equipment, rated capacity, chocking and secondary support;
air-suspension or other stored-energy controls where relevant;
communication, public protection and emergency arrangements;
decision to repair, relocate or recover, with the reason;
changes, stop-work events and supervisor involvement;
completion, removal of equipment and final vehicle condition; and
defects, near misses and corrective actions requiring follow-up.

Photographs may help record position, surface and supports, but they do not replace the decision. Avoid requiring a worker to stand in danger to take evidence.

How should multi-site and fleet operators use the findings?

Fleet owners, roadside-service providers and contractors should agree who controls the repair decision and what information must be exchanged. A client request to keep a vehicle moving must not override the repairer's safe system or recovery trigger.

Review callouts across the organisation for repeated themes: particular vehicle types, unsuitable jacking points, missing equipment, recoveries from the same location, weak caller information, new-technician escalation or pressure to work beneath unsupported vehicles. A near miss or stop-work report from one region should prompt a check for the same exposure elsewhere.

Update the assessment, instructions, equipment standard or competence process when evidence shows a gap. Then verify the change in practice. Issuing a new document without withdrawing the old method, briefing technicians and checking work will not control the risk.

Keep risk decisions and follow-up visible

Fit2Trade Ensure helps organisations keep risk assessments, assigned actions, checks and supporting evidence connected across teams and locations. The platform supports oversight; a competent person must still assess the actual roadside conditions and decide whether repair can proceed safely.

Explore Fit2Trade Ensure

Primary sources

This article provides general operational guidance for Great Britain. Apply the law, road controls, vehicle manufacturer's instructions and competent advice relevant to the vehicle, equipment, location and task.

What Should a Roadside Vehicle Repair Risk Assessment Cover?