Garage Compliance Calendar: What Dates Should a UK Workshop Track?
Garages often know they need inspections and reviews but struggle with the dates. The important point is that not every compliance item follows the same annual cycle. A useful calendar records the real due date from the report, written scheme, competent-person recommendation, regulator deadline or policy renewal.
Reviewed: 28 August 2026.
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The free health check identifies the areas that may apply to your garage. From there, important dates can be linked to the underlying compliance record rather than managed as isolated reminders.
Start My Free Compliance Health CheckDates and reviews commonly worth tracking
Vehicle lifts and lifting equipment
Track the next thorough-examination date shown on the competent person's report or examination scheme. HSE motor-vehicle-repair guidance commonly refers to six-monthly thorough examination for vehicle lifts, but the correct date for your equipment should come from the applicable examination arrangements and current guidance.
Air compressors and pressure systems
Where a Written Scheme of Examination applies, record the next examination date specified by the scheme or competent person. Avoid using a generic annual interval unless that is actually what your written scheme requires.
LEV and extraction
Record examination and test dates for local exhaust ventilation and any corrective actions. Different systems and processes can have different requirements, so use the current HSE guidance and the competent person's report as the source for the next date.
Fire risk assessment and emergency arrangements
Set a review reminder and also review sooner after significant changes, incidents or changes to the premises or work. There is no single statutory annual review date that fits every garage.
COSHH and hazardous substances
Review assessments when substances, processes, exposure information or controls change. A sensible management calendar can prompt periodic review, but the trigger should reflect actual workshop changes rather than an invented universal expiry date.
Electrical inspections
Keep the next inspection or review date recommended by the competent person who inspected the fixed electrical installation. Do not assume every garage automatically follows the same three-year or five-year cycle.
Waste paperwork and carrier checks
Track waste-transfer paperwork, hazardous-waste documentation where relevant, and periodic checks that contractors or carriers remain appropriately registered. Retention periods and rules can differ by waste type and UK nation.
MOT tester training and assessment
For MOT centres, each tester's annual training and assessment must be completed within the DVSA training year. For 2026/27 that year runs to 31 March 2027, so record progress early rather than treating March as the working deadline.
Insurance and policy renewals
Record renewal dates for employers' liability and other motor-trade policies, then work backwards so supporting inspection reports and compliance records are organised before the broker or insurer asks for them.
A date should always point to evidence
A reminder saying “lift inspection due” is much more useful when it links to the previous examination report, identifies the lift concerned and records any defects or actions. The same principle applies to LEV, pressure systems, electrical inspections, fire reviews and training. That creates an audit trail rather than a diary full of disconnected dates.
Related guidance
Frequently asked questions
What compliance dates should a UK garage track?
Typical dates include equipment examinations, LEV tests, pressure-system examinations, fire-risk reviews, training deadlines, insurance renewals, waste checks and actions arising from inspections. The exact list depends on the activities and equipment at the site.
Do all garage inspections have annual deadlines?
No. Some requirements have defined intervals, while others depend on a written scheme, competent-person recommendation, risk assessment or change in circumstances. A good compliance calendar stores the real source date rather than applying one generic annual rule.
What is the best way to manage garage compliance dates?
Keep each date linked to the underlying report, certificate, assessment or action. Record who owns the action, what evidence is required and what happens if an inspection identifies a defect.
This is general UK garage compliance guidance, not legal or competent-person advice. Always take the operative date from the current regulator guidance, applicable written scheme, inspection report, risk assessment, policy condition or competent-person recommendation for your circumstances.