Lift compliance without the sales call
Lift maintenance is the compliance line where buyers are most locked in. Long OEM contracts, proprietary controllers, and a thorough examination carried out by someone with a commercial interest in the answer. The desk separates the inspection from the maintenance, and matches independents alongside the majors so you can actually compare.
Who is legally responsible
The employer or person in control of the lift under LOLER, responsible for ensuring a thorough examination is carried out at the required interval by a competent and sufficiently independent person, and that defects are reported and acted on.
What the regulations require
Thorough examination every six months for lifts carrying people, twelve months for goods-only lifts, or to a written scheme of examination.
General duties on the suitability, maintenance and inspection of work equipment.
Safety rules for the construction and installation of lifts, including BS EN 81-20 and 81-50 for new installations.
The framework used to assess and improve the safety of existing lifts, and the basis for most modernisation cases.
What the lifts panel covers
LOLER thorough examination
An independent competent person examines the lift and issues a report of thorough examination with any defects categorised by urgency. This is not the same as servicing.
Maintenance contracts and re-tender
Planned preventative maintenance, callout response and repair. The desk helps you compare comprehensive against basic cover on like-for-like terms.
Modernisation and refurbishment
Controller, drive, door and car refurbishment assessed against EN 81-80, with obsolescence and parts availability quantified before you commit.
Hoists, platform lifts and specialist equipment
Patient hoists, stairlifts, platform lifts and dock levellers, which are frequently missed off the asset register entirely.
Accreditation the desk checks for
- Thorough examination independent of the maintenance provider
- Response and fix times defined separately, with entrapment response stated in minutes
- Parts obsolescence disclosed at tender, not discovered in year three
- Callout data from the last twelve months provided to bidders so pricing is real
- Open-protocol controllers specified on any modernisation, to avoid future lock-in
Where buildings usually come unstuck
Consequence: The person reporting defects is the person paid to fix them, which LOLER guidance warns against
Fix: Appoint a separate SAFed competent person or use your insurer's engineer
Consequence: Direct enforcement exposure, and insurer refusal on a claim
Fix: Track every reported defect with a dated closure and a copy of the repair record
Consequence: Maintenance priced low, repairs unbounded
Fix: Retender on a defined scope, with repair rates and response times in the contract
Consequence: Statutory examinations simply not happening
Fix: Full asset survey before any retender, which the desk builds into the brief
Lifts questions buyers actually ask
How often does a lift need a LOLER thorough examination?
Every six months for lifts carrying people, every twelve months for goods-only lifts, or in accordance with a written scheme of examination drawn up by a competent person.
Is a thorough examination the same as a service?
No. Servicing keeps the lift running. A thorough examination is a statutory safety inspection by a competent person, and it should be independent of whoever maintains the lift.
Can our maintenance company do the thorough examination?
It is legally possible but HSE guidance is clear that the competent person should be sufficiently independent and impartial. Most well-run estates use a separate SAFed member or an insurer-appointed engineer.
When should we modernise rather than repair?
The usual triggers are parts obsolescence, repeated entrapments, rising callout cost and an EN 81-80 assessment showing multiple high-risk deviations. A modernisation feasibility study should quantify all four before you commit.
Can the desk match independents as well as the OEMs?
Yes, and that is usually the point. You get a comparable set including at least one independent so the tender is genuinely competitive.
Lifts guides
Need lifts specialists?
Send one brief. Inside forty-eight hours you get three firms that have confirmed capacity and hold the accreditation for your exact scope, and we set up the introductions on your word.