There isn’t a single mobile food vendor wants to shut down their food truck operations, even temporarily. Every shift or day that passes means lost revenue and sends a bad message to your existing and future customers. However, without understanding the situations that could close your food truck, it can become a reality for many vendors.

5 situations that could close your food truck this year:

Something little, like a flat tire or a windshield crack, may seem insignificant at the time. If it happens to you, you’ll see it can quickly escalate into a major issue. Just as most vendors have a kitchen fire escape plan in place, you should plan for other situations. Especially for those that could force you to close your food truck’s service window until the situation is resolved.

Flat Tires

A flat tire can be one of the quickest and easiest ways to keep customers from tracking down your food truck. Keep a constant eye on the condition of your food truck’s tires and make sure they maintain the manufacturer suggested air pressure (psi).

Also monitor the condition of the tread and side walls of the tires. Clipping curbs by taking corners too sharply can put undue wear on a tire and can lead to flats if your drivers don’t learn how to properly navigate your truck.

RELATED: Changing Tires On A Dually Food Truck

Plumbing System Clogs

Pipe blockage or a backed-up drain can create a big problem, limiting fresh water to wash hands and equipment in your food truck. To prevent clogs or buildup in water (fresh and grey) lines by implementing a plumbing maintenance program that flushes the system with good bacterial products to keep lines clear.

Kitchen Fires

Data from the National Fire Prevention Association (NFPA) indicates that of the food service establishments that have fires, 57 percent of which were started by cooking equipment. Regularly cleaning and maintaining your food truck’s hood kitchen exhaust systems will limit the impact of a fire. This cleaning will also keep your from having a catastrophic fire that burns down the entire truck.

RELATED: Putting Out Food Truck Kitchen Fires

Bug Infestation

Nothing can get people talking negatively about your food truck more quickly than the presence of bugs. The mention of a roach in an online review can prevent people from taking the time to track your vehicle to your next stop and quickly alert local public health officials. This could result in a potential closure.

Have a pest control specialist semi-annually inspect your food truck and make sure the same is being done at your commissary. This will prevent an infestation.

Unsanitary Conditions

Local health departments regularly inspect food trucks to ensure food is properly handled and stored. Inspectors also check to ensure the proper processes are in place to prevent cross contamination in the food mobile food vendors serve.

By providing approved chemical dispensing systems on your truck, you can help ensure cleaning chemicals are available and properly diluted. This will help encourage their use. But also, it will improve overall sanitation levels and limit the opportunity for an inspector to close your food truck.

The Bottom Line

While we understand that there are many more ways a food truck can be forced to shut down its operations, don’t let one of these simple to prevent situations that could close your food truck by implementing maintenance and monitoring systems.

Has your food truck needed to shut down because of some of these situations? We’d love to hear from you. Feel free to share your story in the comment section, our food truck forum or social media. Twitter | Facebook