Prepare for Your NHVR SMS Audit with Confidence

Know exactly what auditors will ask and where to find your answers in Hubfleet.

‍NHVR auditors assess your Safety Management System against the 5 SMS outcome areas defined in the SMS Standard. During an audit, they ask specific questions to evaluate whether your SMS is Present, Suitable, Operating, and Effective (PSOE).

This guide maps common auditor questions to where you'll find the evidence in Hubfleet, helping you prepare for a successful audit.

‍Looking for a high-level overview? See our Audit Readiness page for how Hubfleet automates audit evidence collection and reporting.

Audit Success with Hubfleet

Access all your PSOE evidence in one platform

Show real-time operational data — not static reports

Demonstrate systematic safety management across all 5 outcome areas

Walk auditors through live system usage with confidence

How to Use This Guide

Review each section to understand what auditors will ask and ensure you can access the evidence in Hubfleet before your audit date.

Outcome Area 1

Leadership & Commitment

What Auditors Look For

Auditors assess whether senior management actively leads safety and creates a positive safety culture. They want to see that safety is a management priority, not just a compliance checkbox.

Common Auditor Questions

"Show me your organizational structure with safety roles defined"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Settings → Safety Categories — each category has an assigned safety leader responsible for that area
An overall safety leader is assigned at the organisation level
Escalation contacts are configured for high-risk items, ensuring the right people are notified when risk thresholds are exceeded

PSOE Evidence:

Present: Safety leaders defined for each category and overall
Suitable: Roles match your operation's size and complexity
Operating: Current employees are assigned and actively receiving notifications
Effective: Escalation contacts ensure high-risk items reach senior management

"Where is your safety policy and who signed it?"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Policies & Procedures Management → Safety Policy
Digital signature from senior management
Distribution records showing who received it
Acknowledgment tracking with dates

PSOE Evidence:

Present: Safety policy documented and signed
Suitable: Policy covers your specific operations and risks
Operating: Policy distributed to all staff with acknowledgments
Effective: Policy reviewed annually and updated when needed

"What are your safety KPIs and how does management review them?"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Hubfleet tracks the operational data that feeds your safety KPIs across every module:

Fatigue: Breach counts, extended fatigue hours requests, split rest usage — all tracked in the EWD
Incidents & Hazards: Incident and hazard volumes, severity, and closure rates in the risk register
Maintenance: Pre-start completion rates, open faults, overdue work orders
Training: Completion rates and expiry status by role

Management can review this data across modules and use it as evidence of KPI monitoring during audits.

PSOE Evidence:

Present: Operational data tracked across all SMS areas
Suitable: Data covers leading and lagging safety indicators
Operating: Data updated automatically from daily operations
Effective: Trends in operational data demonstrate safety improvement

"Show me evidence of management reviews"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Hubfleet provides the data and evidence that supports your management review process:

Risk register showing current risk status, controls, and trends
Corrective Action Register (CAR) with open/completed actions and due dates
Incident and hazard data demonstrating what's happened since the last review
Training and certification status showing workforce competency
Policy acknowledgment records confirming communication effectiveness

Use this data to run structured management reviews and document outcomes in your policy library.

PSOE Evidence:

Present: All SMS data accessible for management review
Suitable: Data covers all 5 outcome areas for comprehensive reviews
Operating: Real-time data available for review at any time
Effective: Corrective actions from reviews tracked to completion in the CAR

Outcome Area 2

Risk Management

What Auditors Look For

Auditors want to see systematic identification, assessment, and control of safety risks. They're looking for evidence that you proactively manage risks, not just react to incidents.

Common Auditor Questions

"How do you identify safety hazards in your operation?"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Risk Management → Hazard Register
Mobile hazard reporting from drivers and staff
Hazard categorization and risk ratings
Photos and GPS location stamps

PSOE Evidence:

Present: Hazard reporting system exists
Suitable: System accessible to all staff including drivers
Operating: Regular hazard reports being submitted
Effective: Hazards identified before incidents occur

"Show me your risk register"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Risk Management → Risk Register
Unified register covering all risk sources (hazards, incidents, NCRs, faults)
Risk assessment matrix with likelihood and severity
Assigned risk owners
Control measures linked to each risk (see Risk Controls)

PSOE Evidence:

Present: Comprehensive risk register maintained
Suitable: Covers all activities and contexts in your operation
Operating: Register updated when new risks identified
Effective: High risks have effective controls implemented

"How do you assess and rate risks?"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Risk Management → Assessment Methodology
Risk matrix (likelihood × consequence)
Standardized rating system
Risk assessment workflow

PSOE Evidence:

Present: Documented risk assessment method
Suitable: Method appropriate for transport risks
Operating: All risks assessed using consistent methodology
Effective: Risk ratings drive priority of controls

"Show me your incident investigation process"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Risk Management → Incident Investigation section for documenting findings and outcomes
Risk Management → Hazard Risk Management section for assessing and rating identified hazards
Corrective actions created from investigations and linked to the Corrective Action Register
Evidence attachments including photos, statements, and supporting documents

PSOE Evidence:

Present: Investigation and risk management process documented
Suitable: Investigation depth matches incident severity
Operating: All incidents investigated with findings documented
Effective: Corrective actions prevent recurrence

Outcome Area 3

People

What Auditors Look For

Auditors assess whether your people are competent, fit-for-duty, and understand their safety responsibilities. They want to see systematic management of training, qualifications, and fitness.

Common Auditor Questions

"How do you verify driver licenses and qualifications?"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Custom roles — create roles for different license types (e.g. HC, MC, HR) and assign drivers accordingly, so you can track who holds which license class
Mobile hazard reporting from driveLicense expiry tracking — license expiry dates are tracked with automatic reminders before they lapsers and staff
Custom forms — use custom forms to capture license images or other verification evidence from drivers
Medical certificates — stored in the driver register with expiry tracking

PSOE Evidence:

Present: License types tracked via roles, expiry dates monitored
Suitable: Custom roles match your operation's specific license requirementsSystem accessible to all staff including drivers
Operating: Expiry alerts ensure no drivers slip through the cracks
Effective: No drivers operating with expired licenses

"Show me your training records"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Training & Competency Assessment → Training Register
Training requirements by role
Completion records with certificates
Training expiry tracking
Training history for each person

PSOE Evidence:

Present: Training requirements defined and documented
Suitable: Training relevant to roles and risks
Operating: Training delivered and completion tracked
Effective: Trained personnel demonstrate competency

"How do you assess fitness-for-duty?"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Fit for Duty → Fitness Check
Daily fitness-for-duty self-assessment
Supervisor review for marginal assessments
Complete fitness check history
Declarations with timestamps

PSOE Evidence:

Present: Fitness-for-duty check process documented
Suitable: Covers fatigue, illness, injury, medication, impairment
Operating: Daily checks completed before each shift
Effective: Unfit drivers removed from duty

"Where are your medical certificates stored?"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Fit for Duty → Medical Certificates
Medical certificate uploads
Expiry tracking with reminders
Medical clearance documentation
Conditional license tracking

PSOE Evidence:

Present: Medical certificate repository
Suitable: Tracks all required medical certifications
Operating: Current certificates on file
Effective: No drivers working with expired medical clearance

"How do you communicate safety information to staff?"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Policies & Procedures Management → Distribution & Acknowledgment
Safety bulletins and notifications
Read receipts and acknowledgment tracking
Meeting records and attendance
Communication logs

PSOE Evidence:

Present: Communication process documented
Suitable: Multiple channels for different message types
Operating: Regular communication with acknowledgment tracking
Effective: Staff demonstrate awareness of safety information

Outcome Area 4

Assurance

What Auditors Look For

Auditors want to see that you monitor your SMS performance, conduct internal audits, track corrective actions, and continuously improve. They're assessing whether you can demonstrate your SMS is effective.

Common Auditor Questions

"What KPIs do you monitor?"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Hubfleet captures the operational data that forms the basis of your safety KPIs:

Leading indicators: Hazard reports submitted, pre-start completion rates, policy acknowledgments, training completions
Lagging indicators: Incident counts, fatigue breaches, NCRs raised, corrective action overdue rates
All data is timestamped and traceable, providing the raw evidence auditors want to see

PSOE Evidence:

Present: Operational data tracked across all SMS areas
Suitable: Covers both leading and lagging indicators
Operating: Data captured automatically from daily operations
Effective: Trends in data demonstrate safety improvement over time

"Show me your internal audit schedule and findings"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Hubfleet provides the evidence base that supports your internal audit program:

Risk register — review current risks, controls, and open items as part of your audit
Corrective Action Register (CAR) — audit findings can be recorded as corrective actions with assigned owners and due dates
NCRs — non-conformances identified during audits are managed through the NCR workflow
Operational data across all modules provides auditable evidence of SMS activity

Use your policy library to store your internal audit schedule, checklists, and findings documentation.

PSOE Evidence:

Present: Evidence base and NCR/CAR workflows support internal auditing
Suitable: Data covers all 5 outcome areas for comprehensive audits
Operating: Operational data demonstrates ongoing SMS activity
Effective: Audit findings tracked through CAR to closure

"Where is your corrective action register?"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Non-Conformance Reporting (NCR) → Corrective Action Register (CAR)
All actions from incidents, audits, reviews, hazards
Assigned responsibility and due dates
Status tracking (open, in progress, completed)
Effectiveness verification

PSOE Evidence:

Present: Corrective action system exists
Suitable: Captures actions from all sources
Operating: Actions assigned, tracked, and completed
Effective: Actions prevent recurrence of issues

"Can you show me your incident trends?"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Risk Management → Incident Register — filter and sort by date, severity, vehicle, location and category to walk auditors through frequency and trends
Investigation findings, root causes and contributing factors captured against each incident
Export the register at any time for year-over-year comparison or deeper analysis
Roll-up trend dashboards are on the way; the underlying timestamped data is being collected from day 1

PSOE Evidence:

Present: Every incident captured with full investigation and audit trail
Suitable: Severity, cause and category fields support trend analysis relevant to your risk profile
Operating: All incidents logged through the workflow with consistent investigation
Effective: Register data and exports show whether controls are reducing incident frequency and severity over time

Outcome Area 5

Safety Systems

What Auditors Look For

Auditors assess whether you have documented policies and procedures that embed safety into daily operations. They want to see that your systems integrate with your business, not sit in a binder unused.

Common Auditor Questions

"Where is your policy library?"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Policies & Procedures Management → Policy Library
Categorized policies and procedures
Digital access for all staff (web and mobile)
Searchable policy database
Version control — approved policies are immutable; updates require a new version with fresh acknowledgments from all users
Review cycles for scheduled policy and procedure reviews

PSOE Evidence:

Present: Complete policy library covering all risk areas
Suitable: Policies relevant to your operation and risks
Operating: Policies distributed with acknowledgment tracking; review cycles ensure regular updates
Effective: Staff always acknowledge the current version; old acknowledgments don't carry over

"Show me your procedures"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Policies & Procedures Management → Procedure Library
Procedures for high-risk tasks
Loading and restraint procedures
Maintenance procedures
Emergency response procedures

PSOE Evidence:

Present: Procedures documented for all high-risk activities
Suitable: Procedures detailed enough to guide safe work
Operating: Staff trained on procedures and can access them
Effective: Procedures followed in practice

"How do you manage Chain of Responsibility?"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Chain of Responsibility (CoR) — Pre-trip checks with photo capture for axle weights and load details including photos as evidence
Mass Management — Capturing loading data against trips and vehicles
Data sharing with CoR partners — share relevant compliance data with parties in the chain
Policies & Procedures Management — Distributed to all CoR parties with acknowledgment tracking

PSOE Evidence:

Present: CoR evidence capture processes in place
Suitable: Addresses your specific supply chain and loading operations
Operating: Drivers capturing load evidence on every trip
Effective: Photo evidence and data sharing demonstrate active CoR management

"How do you control document versions?"

Where to find it in Hubfleet:

Immutable once approved — once a policy or procedure is approved and active, it cannot be changed, ensuring document integrity
Replacement workflow — to update a policy, a new version is created and must go through its own approval process. The old version is archived automatically
Fresh acknowledgments required — when a new policy replaces an old one, all users must acknowledge the new version. Acknowledgments from the previous version do not carry over
Review cycles — policies and procedures have configurable review cycles, prompting timely reviews and updates
Full version history maintained so auditors can see the complete lifecycle of each document

PSOE Evidence:

Present: Version control with immutable approved documents
Suitable: Replacement workflow ensures controlled changes with full traceability
Operating: Review cycles prompt regular updates; fresh acknowledgments confirm staff awareness
Effective: Auditors can verify every version, its approval, and who acknowledged it