Outsourcing transport doesn't outsource the liability.
If your business sends, receives or manages freight, Chain of Responsibility obligations under the Heavy Vehicle National Law sit with you and your directors — even when transport is fully outsourced. We build practical, commercially simple compliance frameworks that let you demonstrate reasonable steps with confidence.
- Certified auditor led
- Independent advice
- Evidence-based audits
- NHVAS module audits
- Practical, commercial frameworks
- Australia-wide coverage
Book a 30-Minute Exposure Review
Find out where Chain of Responsibility obligations sit in your operation.
A certified auditor will respond within one business day. No sales pitch — just clarity on where you stand.
Download a compliance checklist
Chain of Responsibility Starter Checklist
A fast baseline of the Chain of Responsibility obligations that apply to your operation.
NHVAS Audit Readiness Checklist
What to have in place before a Maintenance, Mass or Fatigue module audit.
Director's CoR Due Diligence Checklist
The reasonable-steps evidence executives are expected to be able to show.
Three blind spots that catch directors out
Most Chain of Responsibility exposure is not deliberate. It hides inside assumptions like these.
Reliance without verification
You trust your transport providers. But there is no structured monitoring or documented oversight behind that trust — and trust alone is not a defence.
Policy without evidence
The policies exist. The audit trails, training records and monitoring that prove they actually work do not.
Delegation mistaken for accountability
Operational responsibility can be delegated. Legal accountability stays with the business and its executives.
If any of these sound familiar, a 30-minute exposure review will show you exactly where you stand.
Book a 30-Minute Exposure ReviewTrusted by industry leaders
Chain of Responsibility compliance services
From a fast baseline assessment to full enforcement response, one advisory team covers the entire compliance lifecycle.
Online CoR self-assessment
A fast compliance baseline. Risk-rated gap analysis with a prioritised action plan you can act on immediately.
On-site CoR audit
Evidence-based assurance through interviews, site walkthroughs and record sampling, completed by a certified auditor.
System design & implementation
Governance, controls and documentation built around how your operation actually works — not a generic template.
Managed compliance support
Ongoing oversight, reporting cadence and action tracking that keeps your systems current and your evidence healthy.
Notices, investigations & enforcement
Structured triage, evidence packs and corrective action programs when regulator scrutiny escalates.
NHVAS audits
Independent Maintenance, Mass and Fatigue module audits with corrective action planning to support accreditation.
Not sure whether CoR even applies to you?
That question is exactly what the 30-minute exposure review answers. In one structured conversation, we will:
- Clarify where Chain of Responsibility obligations sit in your operation
- Identify any structural blind spots in your oversight
- Outline two to three practical steps to strengthen your position
No cost. No obligation. No sales pitch.
Advice from the field, not a textbook
I’m Urszula Kelly, founder and Principal Advisor at HVNL Advisory, and a Certified Auditor. My job is simple to describe and hard to do: translate regulatory obligation into everyday operational clarity, tailored to how your business actually runs.
Alongside me, advisors Darryl Brown and Mel Booth bring the same field-first approach to every engagement across Australia — every engagement auditor-led, for freight owners, 3PLs and operators of all sizes.
Meet the team
Why businesses trust us with their CoR compliance
Certified auditor led
Every engagement is led by a certified auditor — not a generalist consultant working from a checklist.
Independent & impartial
We have no stake in your transport contracts or providers. You get findings you can rely on.
Evidence first
We build audit trails and records that hold up under scrutiny — not policies that sit on a shelf.
Commercially simple
Controls designed around how your operation runs, without slowing it down or burying it in paperwork.
Defensible by design
Everything we build maps back to the reasonable steps standard that regulators assess against.
Baseline to enforcement
One advisory team across the full lifecycle, from self-assessment through to enforcement response.
Deep in the sectors that live and breathe freight
From inbound raw materials to last-mile delivery, these are the businesses where Chain of Responsibility duties bite hardest — and where we do our best work.
Machinery manufacturers
Heavy, high-value loads and constant inbound–outbound freight that place you firmly in the chain.
Food manufacturers
Tight delivery windows and perishable freight where scheduling pressure collides with CoR duty.
Transport & logistics companies
Operators and 3PLs carrying primary duties across every load, driver and subcontractor.
Supermarkets
Complex inbound networks and DC operations with consignor and receiver obligations at scale.
Built for every party in the chain
You outsource the trucks. The law says you still own the risk.
Retailers, manufacturers and resource companies are parties in the chain the moment freight moves on their behalf. We help you meet Chain of Responsibility obligations through practical controls, governance and defensible evidence — even when every truck belongs to someone else.
- Structured oversight of outsourced transport providers
- Governance frameworks sized for your risk profile
- Evidence your board can stand behind
Consistent assurance across every site, customer and subcontractor
Warehousing and transport providers sit in the middle of everyone's chain. We help you build assurance that holds across multiple sites, demanding customers and layered subcontractor networks — without slowing your operation down.
- Subcontractor management frameworks that scale
- Customer-ready compliance evidence on demand
- Consistent standards across every site you run
Compliance that grows with you, not against you
Owner drivers, subcontractors and fleet managers do not need an enterprise compliance department. You need achievable controls and clean records that satisfy customer expectations today and scale as the fleet grows.
- Right-sized controls you can actually maintain
- Records that win and keep contract work
- A clear pathway as you add vehicles and drivers
How an engagement runs
No mystery, no scope creep. Five clear stages from first conversation to close-out.
Scope
We define your role in the chain, the sites and functions in scope, and your risk profile.
Review
We review your documentation, records and operational context to focus effort where it matters.
Audit
Interviews, walkthroughs and evidence sampling, completed against the agreed plan.
Findings
Clear findings with risk ratings, recommended controls, owners and timeframes.
Close-out
Practical next steps — implementation support, verification or ongoing oversight.
Regulators do not assess intentions. They assess evidence.
Find out whether your records would hold up — before anyone asks to see them.
Know where you stand before a regulator decides for you.
Thirty minutes with a certified auditor. Clarity on your obligations, your blind spots and your next steps.
Talk to an advisor
Prefer to start with a conversation? Reach us directly — or book your exposure review and we will come to you prepared.
We reply within one business day.