What does a contract vehicle check cover?
Oil and gas clients set rules for the vehicles their contractors bring to site: a maximum vehicle age, often a maximum odometer reading, and safety equipment such as an IVMS device, three-point seat belts on every seat and, for pickups used off road, a rollover protective structure. The figures differ by client and by contract, so they are always your inputs here.
A vehicle that meets the rules on the first day can still age out halfway through a three-year contract. This tool checks each vehicle at the start and through to the end of the contract, shows the date each one leaves, and counts the replacements and retrofits you need for each contract year, so the cost is in your bid and not a surprise in year two.
Why check before you bid or mobilize?
- Price the replacements: a vehicle that ages out in year two is a purchase you have to fund, and the contract rate has to carry it.
- Pass the mobilization inspection: a vehicle refused at the gate costs days of standby. Fix the IVMS and rollover protection gaps before the inspection.
- Plan the order dates: new vehicles and upfitting take time; the date each vehicle leaves tells you when to order.
- Keep the fleet record straight: one table of model years, odometers and equipment is the same list the client's auditors ask for.
What inputs do you need?
| Input | Where to find it | Tip |
|---|---|---|
| Age, odometer and equipment rules | The contract, the client's vehicle or land transport standard, the tender documents | Check whether age is counted from the model year or the first registration, and enter that year. |
| Model year | Vehicle registration | Use the year your client counts from. |
| Odometer and distance a year | Tracking system reports or the last service record | Use the last 12 months of distance for each vehicle. |
| IVMS, rollover protection, belts | Installation records and a walk-around | The Vehicle Pre-Mobilization Inspection Checklist records each item per vehicle. |
| NCAP rating | Euro NCAP, ANCAP or the client's list | Only if the contract asks for a minimum rating. |
How does the check work?
Age and odometer
Counting from 1 January of the model year is the strict reading: a 2021 vehicle is "older than five years" from 1 January 2026. If your contract counts from the first registration date, enter that year instead. Buses use the truck limit unless you enter their own.
Status of each vehicle
Replacement plan
A replacement is assumed to be a new vehicle that meets the rules for the rest of the contract. The tool has no client limits of its own: every limit and price on the page is an example to replace with your own.
Sources
- IOGP Report 365, Land transportation safety recommended practice (fourth edition, 2020), includes vehicle specifications by type of vehicle and refers to 5-star NCAP-rated light vehicles: IOGP, 16 September 2020. Source: IOGP.
- OGP's recommendation that company vehicles owned, leased or contracted for more than three months have IVMS installed: NIOSH and SPE paper 156535, Implementing an In-Vehicle Monitoring Program, 2012. Source: CDC Stacks.
- Rollover definition (any crash where the vehicle has flipped to its sides or top, or rolled on any axis): IOGP land transport safety FAQ. Source: IOGP. Last reviewed 21 October 2026.
Worked example: ten vehicles, a three-year contract
The example rows with readings on 21 October 2026 and a contract from 1 November 2026 to 1 November 2029, with example limits of 5 years and 250,000 km for light vehicles and 10 years and 800,000 km for trucks:
- LV-104, a 2021 car, aged out on 1 January 2026: not eligible at the start.
- LV-103 (2022) and HV-301 (2017) age out on 1 January 2027, in contract year 1; LV-102 ages out on 1 January 2028.
- LV-105 drives 70,000 km a year from 120,000 km and reaches 250,000 km at the end of August 2028, before its age limit: it leaves on the odometer rule.
- 4 of 10 vehicles are eligible for the whole contract. Three need fitting before the start: IVMS on LV-105 and TK-302, rollover protection on LV-102.
- With the example prices in US dollars, the plan is 1 replacement before the start, 2 in year 1, 2 in year 2 and 1 in year 3, and $435,200 in total including $3,200 of fitting.
How to read your results
- Not eligible at the start: replace or swap these vehicles before mobilization; they will not pass the client's inspection.
- Leaves during the contract: the date is when to have the replacement on site. Allow time for ordering, upfitting and the client's inspection.
- To fit: IVMS and rollover protection can be fitted to an existing vehicle; plan the installation before the inspection date.
- Rating to check: a "—" NCAP rating with a minimum in the contract means you need the rating before the vehicle is accepted.
How to keep the fleet compliant through the contract
- Set reminders on the dates: put each vehicle's age-out date and km limit into your maintenance plan, so the replacement is ordered in time.
- Inspect before mobilization: use the Vehicle Pre-Mobilization Inspection Checklist with the client's own items.
- Keep IVMS reports ready: the IVMS Contractor Compliance Kit sets out the monthly driver ratings clients ask for.
- Weigh the replacement: compare buying and leasing with the Vehicle Lease vs Buy Calculator.
Assumptions and limits
The check uses the rules and readings you enter; it does not know any client's standard. Odometers are projected at a steady distance a year. Age is counted from 1 January of the year you enter. Vehicle inspection, documents and driver requirements are outside this tool; your client's inspection decides whether a vehicle is accepted.