Guide
FORS Silver and Gold cost: fees, and what progression demands
Updated
The fee gap between Bronze and Gold is small. The operational gap is not. Progression is where FORS stops being a compliance audit and starts asking for performance evidence.
The published fees
| Fee | Annual audit fee | With audit protection |
|---|---|---|
| Silver evidencing fee | £245 | £299 |
| Gold evidencing fee | £245 | £299 |
| Combined Silver and Gold evidencing fee | £395 | Not listed separately |
| Combined Silver and Gold, small operators (fleet of 3 or fewer) | £245 | Not listed separately |
| Follow-up audit fee, Silver or Gold | £104 | Included with audit protection |
These sit on top of the annual subscription and the Bronze audit, because the FORS Standard states that each level builds on the requirements of the levels beneath it. You do not stop being audited at Bronze because you reached Silver.
What Silver adds
- S1 FORS Bronze, meaning current Bronze accreditation is a precondition.
- S2 Performance data, evidenced on the mandatory FORS progression data report. At first Silver accreditation the report covers a minimum three month baseline; at re-approval it covers the previous 12 months.
- S3 Environmental impact and S4 Road risk, the latter including a declaration that a review with your insurance provider has been conducted within the last 12 months.
- S5 Professional development, S6 Vehicle safety equipment evidenced on a mandatory FORS report, S7 Noise pollution, S8 Internal communications with an annual campaign plan, S9 Sub-contracted services and S10 Fleet transition.
What Gold adds
- G1 FORS Silver as a precondition.
- G2 Recruitment and retention.
- G3 Decarbonisation strategy, the requirement that turns Gold into a board-level commitment rather than a transport office exercise.
- G5 Professional development, G6 Contracted services and G8 Environmental impact engagement.
Where the money actually goes at Silver and Gold
The evidencing fee is £245. The telematics or fuel data system that produces a credible progression data report is not, and neither is the management time to run an annual campaign plan, review sub-contractors, or build a decarbonisation strategy that survives an auditor's questions. If you are being pushed to Silver by a contract, price the data capability first and the fee last. Our form puts you in front of consultants who scope exactly that.
FORS publishes the Standard itself, currently version 7.1, alongside a summary of changes, transitional arrangements and the Bronze audit question set, on its FORS Standard page. Read the question set before you buy anything.