The end-of-shift van inspection checklist for Amazon DSPs
What to check on every van when it comes back from a route, in the order a fleet lead actually walks it — and what to do with what you find before the next load-out.
Why check vans at the end of the shift?
Amazon already has drivers inspect their vans. In a February 2023 letter to Senator Chris Murphy, Amazon said DSP drivers complete pre-trip and post-trip inspections every day, and that the delivery app will not start a route until the pre-trip is done. So why add a check of your own?
Because those inspections belong to the driver. The end-of-shift close-out belongs to the DSP: one person, looking at every van the same way, at the moment the information is most useful.
- Damage is still attributable. A scrape found at 7pm belongs to today’s route and today’s driver. The same scrape found at tomorrow’s load-out belongs to nobody.
- There is still time to act. A dead A/C or a warning light found tonight can be fixed, or the van swapped, before morning. Found at 7am, it costs you a route.
- It builds the baseline. You can only prove damage is new if you know what the van looked like yesterday. A nightly check is that record.
Before you start
- Pick one person to own it. A fleet lead or dispatcher closing out vans as they return gives you one consistent standard — and new damage gets spotted by someone other than the driver who may have caused it.
- Label every van. Put the unit number or a QR code inside the driver’s door, so each report goes against the right van and the photos have something to identify it by.
- Agree what “flag it” means. Anything that would stop the van going out tomorrow, anything new since the last check, and anything a customer would notice.
- Bring light. A phone flashlight is enough for tires and under the bumper once the sun is down.
The checklist, in walk-around order
Start at the driver’s door and walk the van clockwise. The order matters less than doing it the same way every time — that is what makes a missed item stand out.
1. Exterior and damage
Walk each side: front bumper and hood, the passenger side and sliding door, the rear doors and rear bumper, the driver’s side, both mirrors and the windshield. Look for new dents, scrapes, cracked lights and mirror damage, and compare against the last report rather than memory.
If something is new, photograph it before anything else: a wide shot showing the whole side and the unit number, then a close-up. Log the body area, how bad it is and who had the van. Our guide to documenting vehicle damage covers the photos in detail.
2. Tires, one at a time
Check front left, front right, rear right and rear left as you pass each one, and record them separately — “tires need attention” is useless to the shop. Look for:
- cuts, bulges or exposed cords in the sidewall;
- a tire that looks low next to the others;
- uneven wear across the tread, which points to alignment or pressure problems;
- tread depth, measured with a gauge in 32nds of an inch.
In most states, 2/32 of an inch is the legal minimum tread depth, and plenty of fleets replace tires well before that. Set two lines — a warn line and a replace line — and measure instead of eyeballing.
3. Underneath
Look under the front of the van for active drips and for anything hanging: a loose splash shield, a dragging exhaust bracket, curb damage. Clear water dripping near the front after a hot day is usually A/C condensation, not a leak. Oil, coolant or fuel is a leak.
4. Dashboard warning lights
With the engine running, read the dash. Check engine, ABS, tire pressure, battery, oil pressure and brake warnings all go on the report, with a note on whether the light is new. A red warning — oil pressure, brakes, overheating — means the van stays parked until someone has looked at it.
5. Air conditioning
Run the A/C and make sure it blows cold. This is not a comfort item on Amazon routes: in the same 2023 letter, Amazon said its branded vehicles must have working air conditioning, and that vehicles without it are taken out of service until it is fixed.
6. The in-cab camera
Check that the camera is powered, the lens is clean and unobstructed, and the unit is not showing a fault. A camera that quietly stopped working days ago cannot record the events your safety program relies on — and a ten-second nightly check catches it.
7. Fuel or charge
Note the fuel level so nobody inherits an empty tank at 7am. On electric vans, confirm the van is plugged in and charging before you walk away.
8. Cleanliness and the cargo area
Check the cab for trash, food and spills, and the cargo area for anything left behind — packages, straps, loose equipment. Make sure the shelving is intact and the doors latch. The next driver starts their day in this van.
The checklist at a glance
Print it, or put it in whatever tool your fleet lead uses at the door.
| Check | What to look for | Flag it when |
|---|---|---|
| Exterior & damage | Dents, scrapes, cracked lights, mirrors, windshield | Anything new since the last check |
| Tires — FL, FR, RR, RL | Sidewall cuts or bulges, low pressure, uneven wear, tread depth | At or below your warn line, or any visible damage |
| Underneath | Active drips; anything hanging or dragging | Oil, coolant or fuel leaking; loose parts |
| Warning lights | The dash with the engine running | Any warning light — red means park it |
| A/C | Blows cold | Warm air, or not working at all |
| In-cab camera | Powered, lens clean, no fault showing | Off, blocked or reporting a fault |
| Fuel or charge | Gauge reading; EV plugged in | Below what tomorrow’s route needs |
| Cleanliness | Cab and cargo area | Trash, spills or anything left behind |
What to do with what you find
Every flag lands in one of three buckets. Decide which before you move on to the next van.
- Not going out tomorrow. Brake problems, a tire with cords showing or a bulge, a red warning light, an active fuel or coolant leak, A/C that has failed on a branded van. Mark the van out of service with the reason, tell dispatch tonight, and start the repair or line up a replacement.
- Needs work, but can run. A tire at the warn line, an amber light your shop has already diagnosed, a mirror that is cracked but secure. Create a task with a due date, so it is scheduled rather than remembered.
- Record only. Minor scrapes, cosmetic damage, cleanliness. Log it with photos so it is on file — this is the bucket that matters most when the van goes back.
Whatever the bucket, the photos, the note and the driver’s name go on the record the same night.
Run this checklist in under a minute a vanMotentra’s DSP profile turns the end-of-shift check into a phone checklist your fleet lead finishes at the door — tires by wheel, A/C, warning lights, Netradyne and damage — and every flag becomes a task.
See Motentra for DSPsMaking it stick
- Same person, same time, every van. A check that happens every night beats a thorough one that happens twice a week.
- Keep it fast. If closing out a van takes five minutes, it will not survive peak season. A fixed checklist and a label on every van keep a clean van under a minute.
- Close the loop where people can see it. Fleet leads stop flagging things that never get fixed. When a flagged item is repaired, mark it done.
- Compare against last time. The value of the check is spotting what changed, so keep each van’s history in one place and “new” is obvious.
- Look for repeat offenders every week. The same van with the same warning light, or the same tire going soft, is telling you something about the van, the route or the driver.
Related guides: how to document vehicle damage so it holds up, the fleet lease-return inspection checklist and how to build a preventive maintenance schedule.
Frequently asked questions
Does Amazon require an end-of-shift inspection?
Should drivers or a fleet lead do the end-of-shift check?
How long should an end-of-shift van inspection take?
At what tread depth should we replace tires?
What if a van comes back with damage nobody reported?
Sources. Amazon, response to Senator Chris Murphy’s inquiry on the DSP program, February 2023. Tire Rack, tread depth and the penny test. Requirements change; this guide is general operating advice, not a statement of Amazon policy.