LOLER 1998 and PUWER 1998 impose two different duties on the same lift. PUWER Regulation 5 requires the lift to be maintained in efficient working order, which the maintenance contractor does under a service contract. LOLER Regulation 9 requires an independent thorough examination by a competent person at least every six months for passenger lifts, with a written report. A maintenance visit does not satisfy the examination duty.
The legal duty
A passenger lift in a workplace is subject to two sets of regulations at once, and the confusion between them is the most common compliance gap TICDesk sees in lift procurement. Buyers assume that a maintenance contract covers everything. It does not.
PUWER 1998, the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations, applies to all equipment used at work. Regulation 5 requires it to be maintained in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair, and Regulation 6 requires inspection where deterioration could lead to danger. Your lift maintenance contract exists to discharge PUWER.
LOLER 1998, the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations, applies specifically to lifting equipment and adds duties on strength and stability (Regulation 4), lifting persons (Regulation 5), and the thorough examination (Regulation 9) by a competent person, with a written report (Regulation 10) and record keeping (Regulation 11). Your engineering inspection contract, often arranged through the insurer, exists to discharge LOLER.
Both sets of regulations sit under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, and HSE's approved codes of practice L113 (LOLER) and L22 (PUWER) explain how they apply. HSE's leaflet INDG339 is written for lift owners and is the clearest short statement of the position.
LOLER and PUWER compared
LOLER 1998 and PUWER 1998 duties for a passenger lift
| Question | PUWER 1998 | LOLER 1998 |
|---|---|---|
| What is the duty? | Keep the lift maintained in efficient working order and good repair (Reg. 5); inspect where deterioration could cause danger (Reg. 6); ensure users are trained (Reg. 9) | Ensure adequate strength and stability (Reg. 4); protect people being lifted (Reg. 5); plan and supervise lifting operations (Reg. 8); have the lift thoroughly examined (Reg. 9) and act on reports (Reg. 10) |
| Who does the work? | Lift maintenance contractor under a service contract | Competent person, in practice an engineering inspection body independent of the maintainer |
| How often? | Per the maintenance contract, informed by the manufacturer, usage and age; monthly to quarterly visits are typical | At least every 6 months for lifts carrying persons; at least every 12 months for goods-only lifts; or per a written scheme of examination |
| What is produced? | Service reports, a maintenance log, call-out records | A report of thorough examination in the form of LOLER Schedule 1, with defects and due dates |
| What if a defect is found? | Repaired under the contract or quoted as additional work | Notified to the owner forthwith; if it involves imminent risk of serious injury, reported to the enforcing authority; lift withdrawn from use until remedied |
| How long are records kept? | Maintenance log kept up to date while the lift is in use | Periodic reports until the next report or 2 years, whichever is later; installation reports until the lift ceases to be used |
| Does one satisfy the other? | No. Maintenance keeps the lift working | No. Examination checks it is safe to continue in use |
Who is competent for what
The two roles need different competence and, for the examination, independence.
Maintenance is carried out by lift engineers employed by a lift company. Competence is demonstrated by the company's membership of the Lift and Escalator Industry Association (LEIA), engineers' NVQ Level 3 in lift engineering or equivalent, and manufacturer training for the specific equipment. Maintenance contracts vary widely in what they include, from a basic visit-and-lubricate arrangement to a comprehensive contract covering parts and call-outs, and the scope should be read against the examination reports rather than assumed.
Thorough examination is carried out by a competent person who, according to HSE's L113 and INDG339, should have the practical and theoretical knowledge and experience of the equipment to detect defects and assess their importance, and should be sufficiently independent and impartial to make objective decisions. In practice this is an engineering surveyor employed by an inspection body, usually a member of the Safety Assessment Federation (SAFed) and accredited to ISO/IEC 17020 by UKAS. Many owners obtain the service through their insurer's engineering inspection arm. The maintenance contractor should not be the competent person for its own equipment, because the examination is the check on the maintenance.
The intervals in detail
LOLER Regulation 9(3) sets the default intervals, and the competent person can vary them through a written scheme of examination.
LOLER thorough examination intervals by equipment type
| Equipment | Default interval | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Passenger lifts | 6 months | Includes lifts in workplaces used by staff, visitors or the public |
| Platform lifts, stairlifts, lifting platforms for disabled access | 6 months | Lifting persons |
| Patient hoists, ceiling track hoists, bath hoists | 6 months | Lifting persons, common in care homes and healthcare |
| Lifting accessories (slings, chains, eyebolts) | 6 months | Accessories always fall in the 6-month category |
| Goods lifts, dumb waiters, service lifts not carrying persons | 12 months | Where a person could be carried the 6-month interval applies |
| Escalators and moving walks | Not LOLER | Covered by PUWER and BS EN 115; periodic thorough examination is recommended by HSE |
| Any equipment after exceptional circumstances | Immediately | Following damage, a long period out of use, or modification |
The competent person may also specify supplementary tests under Regulation 9, drawing on SAFed's LG1 guidelines, for example periodic load tests or safety gear tests. These are separate from maintenance, and the report will state when they fall due.
Lifts in residential buildings
LOLER applies to lifting equipment used at work. A lift in a block of flats used only by residents is, on HSE's reading in INDG339, generally outside LOLER. Two qualifications matter. First, where the lift is used by people at work, such as caretakers, cleaners, carers or contractors, LOLER applies. Second, the general duties under sections 3 and 4 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 apply to the person in control of the building regardless, and HSE strongly recommends the same six-monthly thorough examination for residential lifts. Managing agents should treat the six-month examination as the standard and record it, because the enforcing authority and the insurer will expect it whatever the technical position.
Reading the report
A LOLER report follows Schedule 1 to the regulations and will contain: the lift's identification and location, the date of examination, the date the next examination is due, whether it is a first examination or a periodic one, any defects that are or could become a danger with the date by which each must be remedied, any repairs or alterations needed, and the competent person's identification. Some inspection bodies grade observations, for example as defects requiring immediate action, defects requiring action within a set time, and observations. Treat the immediate category as a withdrawal from service until the maintainer has attended. Our LOLER thorough examination guide covers the report and defect handling in detail.
Where reports repeatedly recommend the same upgrades, or the lift cannot be brought to modern safety levels by maintenance alone, the question becomes modernisation, which our lift modernisation planning guide addresses using BS EN 81-80, the standard for improving the safety of existing lifts.
Procurement points
- Two contracts, two counterparties. Buy maintenance and thorough examination separately. If your insurer includes engineering inspection, confirm in writing that it covers every lift on the schedule and that the interval is six months.
- Keep a lift register. Every lift, hoist and accessory with its maintenance contractor, inspection body, last and next examination dates, and open defects.
- Sequence the visits. Have the maintainer attend shortly before the examination, so the report reflects a maintained lift, and shortly after, to close defects.
- Close the loop. A report with open defects and no maintainer action is the finding an inspector will make. Our care home compliance checklist shows how many LOLER items a single care home holds.
- Check independence. Ask the inspection body to confirm it does not maintain the lifts it examines for you.
Working with TICDesk
TICDesk is a UK procurement desk for testing, inspection and compliance work. Tell us how many lifts and hoists you have, who maintains them and when the last examination was, and we introduce up to three vetted lift maintenance companies or engineering inspection bodies, typically within 48 hours. The service is free to the client; TICDesk earns a success fee from the contractor. Visit our lifts desk or open a brief.
Frequently asked
What is the difference between LOLER and PUWER for lifts?
PUWER 1998 (Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations) governs the suitability, maintenance, inspection and safe use of all work equipment, including lifts. LOLER 1998 (Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations) adds specific duties for lifting equipment: strength and stability, safe lifting operations, and a periodic thorough examination by a competent person. In practice PUWER is the maintenance contract and LOLER is the independent examination. A lift owner needs both.
How often does a passenger lift need a LOLER inspection?
LOLER Regulation 9(3) requires lifting equipment used for lifting persons to be thoroughly examined at least every six months, and other lifting equipment at least every twelve months, unless a written scheme of examination drawn up by a competent person specifies different intervals. Passenger lifts, platform lifts, stairlifts in workplaces, hoists and their slings are all in the six-month category. Goods-only lifts and dumb waiters are in the twelve-month category.
Can the lift maintenance company do the LOLER thorough examination?
The regulations require a competent person, and HSE guidance in INDG339 advises that the competent person should be sufficiently independent and impartial to make objective decisions, which in practice means someone other than the maintenance contractor. Most lift owners use an engineering inspection body, often arranged through their insurer, for the thorough examination and a separate lift company for maintenance. Independence is what makes the examination worth having.
Does LOLER apply to lifts in blocks of flats?
LOLER applies to lifting equipment used at work. HSE guidance states that a lift in a residential block not used by people at work is generally outside LOLER, but the general duties under sections 3 and 4 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 still apply to the person in control, and HSE strongly recommends the same six-monthly thorough examination regime. Where cleaners, caretakers or contractors use the lift as part of their work, LOLER applies.
What must a LOLER thorough examination report contain and how long is it kept?
Schedule 1 to LOLER sets out the report content: the equipment and its location, the examination date, the next due date, any defects that are or could become a danger, the repairs needed and by when, and the competent person's details. Regulation 11 requires reports of periodic examinations to be kept until the next report or for two years, whichever is later, and reports following installation to be kept until the equipment ceases to be used.
What happens if a LOLER report identifies a dangerous defect?
Regulation 10 requires the competent person to notify the employer or owner forthwith of any defect that is or could become a danger, and, where the defect involves an existing or imminent risk of serious personal injury, to send a copy of the report to the enforcing authority. The owner must take the lift out of service or restrict its use until the defect is remedied. Continuing to operate a lift with a notified dangerous defect is an offence.
Do I need supplementary tests as well as the LOLER examination?
The thorough examination is largely visual and functional. The competent person may specify supplementary tests, for example load tests or safety gear tests, under Regulation 9 where they are necessary to complete the examination. The Safety Assessment Federation's guidelines on the supplementary tests of in-service lifts (LG1) set out the recognised tests and intervals, and the written scheme or the report will state when they are due. They are separate from maintenance and separately priced.
Sources & further reading
