Gaining the Thatcham BSI Kitemark®

Working to achieve the Thatcham BSI Kitemark®, the industry standard for vehicle body repair, brings major benefits - business improvement, consistency and enhanced customer confidence.

Achieving the highly regarded Kitemark® will demonstrate to motor insurers, fleet managers and retail customers that you are committed to providing safe, reliable repair to accident damaged vehicles. You can advertise this by using the Kitemark® in your own literature and promotional material. There are five main stages in the process of gaining the Kitemark® for vehicle body repair:

• Purchase PAS 125
• Apply to BSI
• Arrange an audit
• Receive your Kitemark®  
• Maintain compliance  

PAS 125

You need to purchase a copy of the PAS 125 document by either telephoning us on 08450 765610, or by emailing us here.

Once you have the PAS 125 document, you should carry out your own assessment against the requirements in PAS 125. This will highlight any areas of your repair process where you will need to make adjustments to your working practices.

Checklist

For an indication of what’s required, we have produced a self-evaluation checklist. It will give you an idea of what your repair activities must cover and the sort of questions our auditors will ask - download it now! (PDF size 133Kb).

Gap analysis

If, following your self-assessment, you're still uncertain as to whether you meet all of the requirements, BSI will be happy to carry out a gap analysis. You will receive a report detailing where you need to make improvements, if any.

Make Application

Once you're familiar with the requirements needed to achieve the Kitemark®, you need to make an application to BSI.

Payment

Before any application can proceed we must receive payment instructions. We require a Direct Debit mandate to ensure payments are made regularly to meet administration and Kitemark® licensing fees.

Audit

When your application and Direct Debit mandate have been received, BSI’s appointed auditor will be in touch to undertake a pre-audit review and, when you are ready, to arrange a suitable date for the pre-licence audit. The auditor will also answer any other queries you might have.

Audit visit

To achieve the Kitemark® a repairer has first to demonstrate conformity with the Kitemark® scheme protocol and PAS 125 through a pre-licence audit. This includes an audit of the repair process and quality control procedures.

A typical audit takes one-two days. Our auditors are all experienced individuals from within the automotive industry and qualified by BSI, which helps the audit run smoothly.

Non-compliances

In the event that a non-compliance is identified during the audit, you will need to address this by implementing a corrective action plan. Only safety-related non-compliances will require another visit to your premises, or prevent BSI granting the Kitemark®. Digital photographs and written submissions can all be taken into account when assessing the corrective action plan and clearing non-compliances. 

Kitemark® licence issue

Once the audit is complete and any non-compliances cleared, the auditor’s report is sent to the Scheme Manager for review and a licence decision is made. Your Kitemark® licence, complete with its security hologram, is sent to you with your Kitemark® welcome pack.

Your Kitemark® welcome pack will contain your Kitemark® licence, a presentation copy of the licence for display, further relevant scheme information and details on how to use and reproduce the Kitemark® logo in promotional and advertising material.

Maintaining compliance

Once you've achieved the Thatcham BSI Kitemark®, your commitment to safe, reliable repair is monitored on a regular basis. This takes the form of unannounced visits twice a year to check that standards are being maintained on a day-to-day basis.