Fleet Operator Recognition Scheme (FORS) was originally developed by Transport for London (TfL) in 2008. The scheme was designed to be a recognised voluntary standard for all operators of a commercial fleet from small builders operating a fleet of vans to large haulage companies with hundreds or HGVs on the road. FORS has become a recognised standard in road safety, fuel efficiency, vehicle emissions and economical operations not only in London but also across the entire UK.

The scheme has developed a good reputation and now boasts over 1800 members. Not only in the UK, but there are also 23 European companies who have joined the scheme. In 2012 TfL (Transport for London) also made it mandatory for any contractor or sub-contractor delivering to one of their sites to hold FORS accreditation. Unsurprisingly this has created a steady increase in FORS membership over the last few years and the mandatory requirement of FORS accreditation is becoming more commonplace in contracts and tenders.

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For the last 7 years FORS has been fully subsidised allowing companies to join and gain the bronze accreditation with out any costs, except of course the cost of putting processes and policies in place to comply with the requirements of the scheme. That has all changed now.

Many companies already bring in external consultants at a cost to ensure they are fully compliant with the FORS standards before registering with the scheme and such consultants are now in demand even more since the fees have been introduced to ensure the company gets through the audit first time.

How much does FORS accreditation cost?

FORS membership fees scale up with the size of the business however the audit fees have only 2 bands. An owner operator can expect annual fees of £60 and an audit fee of £420 whereas a company with between 26 and 50 vehicles will be paying £900 and an audit fee of £450 per operating centre.

A failed audit will result in a loss of all fees and even an audit with only one action point will attract an additional follow up audit fee of £235 so it is vital that those applying are confident all policies are procedures are up to the required standard. Those seeking silver and gold accreditation will also incur additional fees of £235 for “An Annual Evidencing Check” so you can easily see how costs can spiral if companies don’t have everything just right.

The Fee structure does begin to get a little complex so there is a handy guide on their website to show you how to work out your FORS fee.

If you are looking to join FORS, get some friendly advice first by calling Chartwise UK on (0191) 4915032 or visit www.chartwise-online.com.