Resources / Patrol log template
Free Template
Security patrol log template
one line per checkpoint
A patrol log is only useful if it shows the visits that were due as well as the ones that happened. This security patrol log template records each checkpoint with its due time, its actual time, a status and the exception found, so a missed round is visible on the page instead of hidden by it. Download it as a PDF to print or an Excel file to edit.
Free download — no sign-up
US Letter, blank, 20 entry lines. The only filled line is marked EXAMPLE.
The shift header
Filled in once, before the first round.
Client / account and site
The billing entity and the address. On a mobile route covering several accounts, use one sheet per account so each client's visits can be handed over without exposing another's.
Patrol route / post
The name of the route or the post the patrol belongs to, exactly as it appears in the post orders. It is what ties the log to the instructions the officer was working from.
Date (shift start)
The date the shift began, even when it runs past midnight. Decide this once and keep it; mixed dates are the most common reason a night's log cannot be matched to the schedule.
Scheduled shift
Start and end as scheduled. Actual times belong in the entries, not here.
Officer name and license number
Printed in full. Initials in the entry column only mean something if the header says whose they are.
Vehicle and mileage
Vehicle number and the odometer at the start (and at the end, in the closing block). Mileage is how you later reconcile how the night was really spent between sites.
Relieved by
The officer who takes over. The log should hand over as cleanly as the keys do.
The entry columns
Eight columns, one line per checkpoint visit.
Round
Which round this is — 1, 2, 3. Numbering rounds makes it obvious when the second round of the night never started.
Checkpoint / location
The named checkpoint or the exact spot: north gate, stairwell B level 3. Use the same names every night so the log can be compared night to night.
Due
The time the visit was due under the post orders or the contract. Without it, a late visit looks exactly like an on-time one.
Arrived
The actual time, to the minute, written at the checkpoint — not at the end of the shift.
Status
OK (checked, nothing to report), EX (an exception was found) or MISSED (not visited — say why). A missed checkpoint is written down, never left blank.
Observations
What was seen, in plain words. One line for routine visits; anything longer is probably an incident.
Exception code and action
The code from the key (D door or gate unsecured, L lighting, H hazard, T person or trespass, V vehicle, A alarm, M maintenance, O other) and what the officer did about it — plus the incident report number when one was raised.
Initials
The officer who made the visit. On a shared route with a handover mid-shift, this is the only column that says who was where.
What a good line looks like
EXAMPLE · Round 1 · North gate · due 22:00 · arrived 22:04 · EX
Gate chain cut. D — photographed, gate secured with spare lock, supervisor notified by radio 22:06.
The end-of-shift block
Rounds scheduled / completed
Both numbers side by side. Four of six rounds is a supervision question; recording it plainly is better than letting the client find it.
Checkpoints missed and why
An alarm call-out, a blocked access road, a medical emergency — the reason turns a gap into an explanation.
Incident report numbers
Every incident report raised during the shift, so the log and the reports can be cross-checked.
Officer signature and supervisor review
Signed by the officer at the end of the shift; reviewed, accepted or returned by a supervisor.
Questions about patrol logs
What is a security patrol log?+
It is the record of each checkpoint visit on a patrol: where the officer went, when the visit was due, when it actually happened, what was found and what was done about it. This security patrol log template puts that on one line per visit, with a header for the shift and a closing block for the totals and the supervisor review.
Is the template free? Do I need to sign up?+
Free, with no sign-up and no form. The PDF and Excel files download directly from this page and you can rebrand them as your own.
How is a patrol log different from a daily activity report?+
The patrol log records the rounds — checkpoints, times and exceptions. The daily activity report is the log of the whole shift, including access control, visitors, alarms and client contact. Many companies use both, with the DAR noting each completed round and pointing to the patrol log for detail.
What if a checkpoint is missed?+
Write MISSED in the status column and the reason in the observations. A blank line looks like a visit that was not recorded; a line that says MISSED because of an alarm response at 02:10 is an explanation the client can accept.
Can a mobile patrol covering several clients use one log?+
It can, but one sheet per account is easier to share. Each client should be able to see its own visits without seeing anyone else's.
How do we stop the log being filled in at the end of the shift?+
On paper, only supervision can: spot checks against the times written and occasional visits during the round. That limitation is the main reason companies move patrols onto checkpoints that record the arrival themselves.
The same log, written by the checkpoint
Used by 600+ security companies worldwide, CGuardPro replaces the arrival column with a scan. Checkpoints are QR codes you print from the dashboard; each arrival is verified by position and server time; routes carry their frequency, hours and late tolerance; and a missed or late stop raises an alert while the shift is still running. Each client reads its own visit history in the client portal.