The Commercial Vehicle Safety Team (CVST), formerly the Commercial Vehicle Investigation Unit, monitors all areas of the commercial vehicle industry, including trucks, buses, taxis, couriers, mobile cranes, and mobile homes.
CVST staff encourage commercial vehicles and drivers to operate within the safety regulations to protect the road network and all road users.
To do this, they:
- encourage compliance with road safety laws by focusing on seasonal and local risks
- work with road transport operators to make sure drivers and vehicles meet health and safety requirements
- check loads are correctly secured
- attend commercial vehicle crashes and advise police staff first on the scene
- advise on and assist with dangerous goods transportation.
Contact a CVST area
Transport operators and drivers may contact one of the four CVST offices for advice or to discuss inspection reports.
CVST Auckland (Area 1 - includes Auckland and Northland):
Private Bag 92002
Auckland 1142
Tel 09 353 0807
Fax 09 309 0451
cvst1@police.govt.nz
CVST Hamilton (Area 2 – includes Hamilton, Tauranga, Rotorua and Taupo):
PO Box 65
Te Awamutu 3840
Tel 07 872 0136
Fax 07 871 8294
cvst2@police.govt.nz
CVST Ohakea (Area 3 – includes New Plymouth, Gisborne, Napier, Hastings and lower North Island):
CVST3
3302 SH 1
Ohakea
Tel 06 329 3098
Fax 06 329 3562
CVST Christchurch (Area 4 – all of South Island):
PO Box 5
Rangiora 7440
Tel 03 313 9717
Fax 03 313 9718
cvst4@police.govt.nz
CVST staff – who does what
Constabulary staff
- Police officers with additional specialist training in commercial vehicle enforcement.
- Qualified to carry out inspections at levels 2, 3, 4 and 7.
- May be based at one of seven compliance stations, or serve their local communities by responding to local and seasonal risks.
- Attend all crashes involving commercial motor vehicles resulting in death or serious injury where roadworthiness is in question, and any crash that is likely to generate significant public interest. Report to Ministry of Transport within 24 hours.
Vehicle safety officers (VSOs)
- Qualified mechanics with extensive experience and knowledge of commercial vehicles.
- Authorised officer status within Police.
- Qualified to carry out all levels of inspections.
- Authorised to issue speeding infringements.
- Attend all crashes involving commercial motor vehicles where the roadworthiness of the commercial vehicle is in question, and report to Ministry of Transport within 24 hours.
Dangerous goods inspectors
- Provide advice and assistance on transportation of hazardous goods by road and rail, including labelling, carriage and driver training and licensing.
Commercial vehicle inspections levels 1-7
Level 1
- Quick inspection carried out by a police officer to check for any obvious issues with vehicle or load, such as a TWIRL check
Level 2
- Driver licence
- Road user charges
- Log book
- Certificate of Fitness
- Licence label
- Load security
- Safety belts
- Alcohol breath test.
Level 3
Level 2 and vehicle inspection for defects that can be visually identified during a walk around of the vehicle and its load. It may include some or all of:
- Steering
- Cab
- Chassis
- Tyres
- Load
- Lighting
- Body work
- Results contribute to Operator Rating System (ORS)
Truck driver pre-trip walk around inspection guide [PDF 260KB]
Bus driver pre-trip walk around inspection guide [PDF 185KB]
Level 4
- Dangerous goods vehicle inspection.
- May be carried out by constables and qualified vehicle safety officers (VSOs).
Level 5
- A vehicle safety and compliance inspection.
- Carried out by qualified vehicle safety officers (VSOs) or NZTA transport officers.
- Hand tools and specialised testing equipment may be used but the inspections are not Certificate of Fitness inspections.
- Results contribute to Operator Rating System (ORS)
Level 6
- Carried out by qualified vehicle safety officers (VSOs).
- Focuses on brakes.
- Results contribute to Operator Rating System (ORS)
Level 7
- Carried out by qualified vehicle safety officers (VSOs), constables or road police.
- Focuses on exhaust.
Guides for drivers and operators
- Tank wagon placards reference guide (2017 06 26) Industry advisory
A guide on dangerous goods placards and special marks for tank wagons.
- Display of TSL Label and Enforcement Consequences Guide (2017 06 26)
Transport Service Licence Labels - rules for carriage and display, and what happens if operators fail to do so.
- RID - ORS Disputed Inspections Resolution Process Flowchart (2017 06 26)
Resolving disputes between CVIU and Licensed Transport Service Operators resulting from roadside inspections
- HMV Categorisation of Defects
A guide designed to aid transport operators and drivers in Level 3 and Level 5 inspections (NZTA website).
- The official New Zealand Truck Loading Code [PDF 2.33MB]
Code of practice for the safety of loads on heavy vehicles.
The Truck loading code sets out a code of practice for the safety of loads on heavy vehicles.
It has been prepared to provide owners, drivers, operators and loading staff with guidance in the basic safety principles that must be followed generally, and in particular the precautions that must be taken to ensure the safe carriage of a number of the more common types of load, including containers, pallets, construction equipment, logs and sawn timber.
- View the most up-to-date Operator Rating System (ORS) here.