If you operate mobile cranes, telescopic handlers, elevating work platforms or any other lifting equipment in the UK, you must ensure it undergoes regular thorough examinations. Under the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER), a thorough examination is a systematic, detailed inspection carried out by a competent person to verify that your equipment remains safe to use. It is not routine maintenance, nor is it a pre-use visual check. It is a formal legal requirement, and without a valid written report, the examination effectively never happened in the eyes of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

The requirement applies to all equipment used for lifting or lowering loads — including people. Examples include overhead cranes, vehicle-mounted cranes, tail lifts, passenger and goods lifts, patient hoists, chain hoists and lifting accessories such as slings, shackles and hooks. LOLER sits alongside the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations (PUWER), which covers the safe provision, use, maintenance and inspection of work equipment more broadly.

What Triggers a LOLER Thorough Examination?

LOLER Regulation 9 sets out four distinct situations that each require a thorough examination. Missing any one of them leaves you non-compliant:

  • Before first use: Any lifting equipment that has not previously been used in your workplace must be thoroughly examined before you put it into service, unless a declaration of conformity (CE or UKCA marking documentation) less than 12 months old is available and the equipment was not assembled on site.
  • After assembly at a new location: Equipment whose safety depends on its installation conditions — such as overhead travelling cranes or fixed hoists — must be examined each time it is installed at a new site, before use. This ensures the installation itself has not introduced safety issues.
  • Following exceptional circumstances: Equipment subjected to conditions likely to have caused deterioration must be examined before it is used again. This includes overloading, severe weather, collision or suspected damage. The duty holder must make a judgement call, but erring on the side of caution is strongly recommended.
  • At periodic intervals: All lifting equipment in regular use must be examined at regular intervals, regardless of whether any exceptional circumstances have occurred.

How Often Must You Arrange Inspections?

For equipment in regular service, LOLER prescribes minimum examination intervals. Lifting accessories — such as chains, slings and hooks — must be examined every six months. The same six-month interval applies to any equipment used to lift people, including aerial work platforms and passenger lifts. Other lifting equipment, including most cranes and hoists, must be examined every 12 months.

You may choose to have examinations carried out more frequently if operating conditions justify it. The competent person carrying out the examination will specify the date by which the next thorough examination is due, and this must appear on the written report.

Who Can Carry Out a Thorough Examination?

The term "competent person" is not defined in law, but the LOLER Approved Code of Practice makes clear that the individual must have appropriate practical and theoretical knowledge and experience of the equipment in question. They must be able to detect defects or weaknesses and assess their importance in relation to safety and continued use.

Although the competent person may often be employed by an external organisation — typically a LEEA-accredited inspection company — this is not mandatory, provided they are sufficiently independent and impartial. However, the competent person cannot be the same individual who undertakes routine maintenance of the equipment, as they would then be responsible for assessing their own work.

What Happens When Defects Are Found?

Thorough examinations classify defects into three categories:

  • Category A (immediate danger): The equipment poses an immediate risk and must be taken out of service immediately. The competent person must report this verbally to the duty holder without delay, followed by a written report. A copy of the report must also be sent to the relevant enforcing authority (HSE or local authority).
  • Category B (timescaled repair): The defect is not immediately dangerous but could become so within a specified timeframe. The equipment may continue in use until the repair deadline, at which point it must be taken out of service if the defect has not been remedied.
  • Category C (observation): The defect does not currently affect safety but should be monitored. No immediate action is required, but the issue should be addressed during routine maintenance or before the next examination.

The Written Report Is Mandatory

Under LOLER Regulation 10 and Schedule 1, the competent person must produce a written report after every thorough examination. The report must include the examination date, the date when the next thorough examination is due, and details of any defects found that are or could become a danger to people. This report forms part of your compliance audit trail. Without it, the examination did not happen as far as the HSE is concerned.

You must keep the report available for inspection by the enforcing authority. For lifting accessories and equipment used to lift people, the report must be kept until the next examination report is issued. For other equipment, the report must be retained for at least two years.

Maintenance vs. Thorough Examination

A common misunderstanding is that routine maintenance can replace a thorough examination. It cannot. Maintenance keeps equipment working; a thorough examination establishes whether it is legally safe to use. Both are required, but they are separate obligations. An item of lifting equipment can be well-maintained and still fail a thorough examination if deterioration or defects have gone undetected.

For day-to-day safety, users should also carry out simple pre-use checks — for example, on winches, chains and slings — or make checks on a daily basis, such as for lift trucks. In some cases, inspections and checks should be made on a regular basis, often weekly but sometimes monthly or quarterly, depending on the equipment type and operating conditions.

The scope of a thorough examination varies by equipment type and condition. For a chain hoist, the examiner will inspect the chain, hooks, load-bearing components, brakes and limit switches. For a mobile crane, they will cover structural members, sheaves, ropes, slew ring, outriggers and the load indicator. The competent person determines the scope based on the equipment's design, age and operating conditions.

Each piece of lifting equipment should have an entry on the duty holder's asset register, recording examination dates and outcomes. This trail is essential if the HSE conducts an inspection or investigates an incident. Missing or incomplete records can result in prosecution, even if no accident has occurred.