What this checklist covers
The EV Emergency Response Checklist is a 15-point scorecard for fire response, thermal runaway awareness, isolation zones, technician evacuation, first responder guidance, and incident reporting. Each criterion is scored from 1 to 5 on what the auditor sees on the day, and every gap goes into an action plan with an owner and a close date.
AutoSmart tip: EV emergency response preparedness should be verified through a live drill, not only through a documentation review. Ask staff: ‘What do you do if you smell burning from an EV battery?’ and observe whether they know to evacuate, call the fire service, and maintain the exclusion zone — or whether they hesitate and look for a fire extinguisher. The correct answer must be instinctive, not retrieved from a mental checklist during an emergency.
The checks
Tap Yes, No or Maybe to try it: your answers stay in this page and clear when you refresh. For a detailed walkthrough, download our PDF or book a demo.
Thermal runaway awareness and fire response
- Are all workshop staff — including non-HV- certified technicians — trained on the signs of thermal runaway: heat from battery, hissing or popping sounds, gas or smoke from the battery area, swelling of battery housing?
- Is the immediate response to suspected thermal runaway clearly defined and practiced: stop work, evacuate the area immediately, do not attempt to fight the battery fire with standard extinguishers, call emergency services?
- Are staff aware that a lithium battery fire cannot be extinguished using CO2 or dry powder extinguishers, and that large volumes of water are required for suppression — and that attempting suppression without the correct means increases risk?
- Is a large-capacity water supply or EV fire suppression kit (if specified by the fire authority) accessible near the EV bay and battery storage area?
Isolation zone and technician evacuation
- Is a minimum safe distance for an EV thermal event established and clearly marked or communicated, with all staff knowing to maintain this distance in an emergency?
- Is an evacuation route from the EV bay and battery storage area clearly marked, unobstructed, and leading directly to the external assembly point — not through other work areas?
- Is the EV bay's electrical isolation point clearly labelled and known to all staff, allowing the workshop supply to be de-energised quickly in an emergency without searching for the isolator?
- Is an evacuation drill conducted that specifically includes an EV emergency scenario, rather than only a general fire drill — confirming staff know how to respond to an EV-specific event?
First responder guidance
- Is a first responder guidance card or laminated sheet available at the dealership entrance and in the EV bay, providing fire service personnel with the locations of HV battery packs, isolation points, and any stored batteries on the premises?
- Does the first responder guidance include model-specific rescue sheet locations (or a QR code linking to them), allowing the fire service to quickly access the relevant rescue information for any EV model on the premises?
- Is the local fire service station pre-informed of the dealership's EV operations — including the fact that HV batteries may be stored on the premises — so first responders are not encountering this information for the first time at an incident?
Emergency contacts and incident reporting
- Is an emergency contact list posted in the EV bay and at the battery storage area, including local fire service, ambulance, the OEM's EV technical emergency line (where available), and the Dealer Principal?
- Is every EV-related emergency or near-miss (including battery damage discovery, charging smoke, unusual battery heat) formally reported and investigated — not verbally acknowledged and moved on from?
- Are EV incident reports shared with the OEM/distributor as required by the dealer agreement, to support product safety monitoring and recall risk assessment?
- Is EV emergency preparedness reviewed annually — including evacuation drills, first responder information accuracy, extinguisher suitability, and staff awareness — and updated when new EV models are added to the service portfolio?
How to run it
How the scoring works
Before the visit, fill in the dealer or centre, the auditor, the date and the audit cycle. Then score each of the 15 checks from 1 to 5 on what you see on the day, not on what the site aims for, and add them up out of 75.
- 1Not in place
- 2Attempted
- 3Defined
- 4Managed
- 5Fully sustained
- Green60–75 · 80–100%Compliant. Keep the standard.
- Amber38–59 · 50–79%Improvement needed: a structured action plan within 30 days.
- Red0–37 · Below 50%Priority intervention, escalated to regional management.
Then close every gap
Each gap goes into the action plan tracker and moves through four stages until the auditor closes it.
- 1PendingOwner and close date set
- 2In progressWork under way, evidence gathered
- 3CompletedEvidence submitted for review
- 4ApprovedVerified and closed by the auditor
