What this guidebook covers
Trading Standards officers buy cars from dealers and have them inspected, so every used car you sell could be a test purchase. Selling an unroadworthy vehicle is a criminal offence, and clocking is fraud, with up to 10 years in prison.
This guidebook covers 6 vehicle standards with 18 checkpoints across used cars, the workshop, tyre bay and MOT centre: pre-sale roadworthiness checks, open recalls cleared before sale, verified mileage, history and write-off checks, legal tyres and MOT testing standards.
The 6 vehicle sales standards
| Code | Standard | Ideal fix time |
|---|---|---|
| VEH-01 | Pre-sale roadworthiness check | Immediate |
| VEH-02 | Open recalls cleared before sale | Immediate |
| VEH-03 | Mileage verified | Immediate |
| VEH-04 | History and write-off checks | 72 hours |
| VEH-05 | Tyres legal and correctly marked | 24 hours |
| VEH-06 | MOT testing standards | 7 days |
How to run a UK vehicle sales standards audit, step by step
- Confirm what applies. Include every used car in stock and on the forecourt, plus the MOT centre if you run one.
- Walk the site, standard by standard. Score each of the 18 checkpoints Pass, Fail or N/A. N/A only where the standard rules it out, with the reason recorded. Pick cars from stock and check the PDI sheet, open recalls, MOT mileage history and tyre markings for each.
- Capture the evidence. A pass counts only with proof captured at the time of the audit: PDI checklists, recall checks, mileage and history reports, and MOT records.
- Give every fail an owner and a fix time. Record what you saw and who owns the fix. Each standard carries an ideal fix time, from immediate to 7 days, counted from audit submission (see the table above).
- Fix it, then prove it. The site fixes the cause and uploads proof of closure; the auditor checks the proof before closing the finding.
- Re-check at the next audit. Confirm closed findings stay closed, and look for the same fail at your other sites so one gap doesn't repeat across the network.
Who this guidebook is for
- Used car and sales managers
- Workshop and MOT managers
- Auditors
A reference document, not legal advice. Fines and rules change: check the current text with the regulator or your legal adviser before acting.
