How often does lifting equipment need a thorough examination under LOLER?

Under LOLER, lifting equipment exposed to conditions that can cause deterioration must be thoroughly examined at least every 12 months. Lifting accessories such as slings and shackles, and any equipment used for lifting people, must be examined at least every 6 months. Instead of these fixed intervals, equipment can follow a written examination scheme drawn up by a competent person. A thorough examination is also needed after installation, after assembly at a new site or location, and after any exceptional circumstances that could affect its safety.

What does SWL mean and where should it be marked?

SWL stands for Safe Working Load, the maximum load a piece of lifting equipment or accessory is rated to lift under particular conditions. LOLER requires lifting machinery to be clearly marked with its SWL. If the SWL changes with configuration, for example with crane radius or telehandler boom extension, that information has to be provided on an indicator plate, load chart or certificate. Accessories must be marked so their safe-use characteristics can be identified.

Who is responsible for planning a lift under LOLER?

LOLER requires every lifting operation to be properly planned by a competent person, meaning someone with enough practical and theoretical knowledge and experience of planning lifts. On UK construction sites this is usually the Appointed Person, who may hold the CPCS A61 Appointed Person category. The plan is then carried out under suitable supervision, often by a Lift Supervisor holding CPCS A62.

Do I need a new lift plan for every lift?

Not always. For routine lifting operations a lift plan may only need writing once, but it must be reviewed before each lift to check nothing has changed. Complex or non-routine lifts need a separate lift plan and a specific risk assessment every time, because the conditions change from one occasion to the next.

Is LOLER covered in the CPCS theory test?

Yes. LOLER comes up regularly in CPCS theory and renewal tests, especially for lifting categories such as A40 Slinger/Signaller, A60 Mobile Crane, A61 Appointed Person, A62 Crane/Lifting Operations Supervisor and A17 Telescopic Handler. Expect questions on thorough examination intervals, SWL marking, lift planning, roles and responsibilities, and what to do when a defect is reported.

LOLER Explained: The Lifting Regulations Every CPCS Operator Must Know

LOLER Explained for CPCS Operators

If you work anywhere near a lifting operation, whether you’re in the cab of a mobile crane, on the ground as a slinger/signaller, or running a telehandler around site, you’re covered by LOLER. It’s one of the most important pieces of legislation in the CPCS scheme. It also turns up again and again in theory and renewal tests.

This guide goes through what LOLER actually requires, who is responsible for what, and the practical points you need to understand, both to stay safe on site and to pass your test.

What Is LOLER?

The Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER) exist to reduce the risks to people’s health and safety from lifting equipment used at work. It sits alongside the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 (HASAWA), PUWER 1998 and the CDM Regulations 2015. PUWER covers work equipment in general, and LOLER adds the specific requirements for lifting.

In broad terms, LOLER requires lifting equipment provided for use at work to be:

Strong and stable enough for its particular use, and marked to show its safe working load (SWL)
Positioned and installed so that risks are kept to a minimum
Used safely, meaning the work is planned, organised and carried out by competent people
Subject to ongoing thorough examination and, where appropriate, inspection by competent people

What Counts as Lifting Equipment?

People often get this wrong. Lifting equipment includes any equipment used at work for lifting or lowering loads, and that includes attachments used for anchoring, fixing or supporting the load. That covers:

Cranes, lifts and hoists
Forklift trucks and telescopic handlers
Mobile elevating work platforms (MEWPs)
Excavators used for object handling
Lifting accessories: slings, hooks, shackles, eyebolts and ropes

The accessories are covered as well as the machine. The chain sling you pull out of the container is lifting equipment, and it has to meet the same standards of marking, examination and safe use.

The Hazards LOLER Is Designed to Control

Lifting operations cause a large share of serious incidents. The main hazards are:

Falling loads
Unstable, swinging or drifting loads hitting structures or people
Crushing, pinning or trapping of people by loads or lifting equipment
Tilting or overturning of the lifting equipment itself

You can cut these risks a long way by positioning equipment so loads don’t pass over people, by setting up exclusion zones around loads moving along a fixed path, and by choosing locations that avoid trapping points. If you’re setting up a crane or telehandler, think about where the load will travel before you put the outriggers down.

Planning Every Lift

Regulation 8 of LOLER is clear on this:

“Every employer shall ensure that every lifting operation is properly planned by a competent person, appropriately supervised and carried out in a safe manner.”

The person planning the lift must have adequate practical and theoretical knowledge and experience of planning lifting operations. On construction sites this is usually the Appointed Person (CPCS A61). All lifting operations must be risk assessed, and every risk identified must be dealt with in the plan, along with the resources, procedures and responsibilities needed.

When planning a lift, the competent person should consider:

The weight, shape and centre of gravity of the load
Whether lifting points are available
The equipment to be used for the task
Environmental conditions such as wind, ground and visibility
Starting and finishing positions
The personnel available, and their knowledge, training and experience

Routine vs Non-Routine Lifts

For routine lifts, a lift plan may only need to be written once, but it must be reviewed before each lift to confirm nothing has changed. For complex or non-routine lifts, a separate lift plan and a specific risk assessment are needed every time, because the conditions vary on each occasion.

A good lift plan should:

Identify the competent person responsible for planning the lift
Identify the lifting operation it relates to
Set out step-by-step instructions for carrying out the lift
Identify the lifting equipment required
Set out the activities assigned to each person

For more on how planning and oversight work together on site, see our guide to management and supervision of lifting operations.

Who Does What on a Lift

How many people you need depends on how complex the lift is, but you’ll usually find these four roles:

Competent person: responsible for planning the lifting operation.
Banksman or signaller: gives clear instructions to the operator. They need a clear view of the load’s path and must always be in view of the operator or able to communicate with them effectively.
Operator: for example the crane operator, who must keep in constant contact with the banksman using hand signals, radios or telephones.
Load handler: attaches, detaches and secures loads to the lifting equipment.

On many sites the slinger and signaller roles are done by one person holding the CPCS A40 Slinger/Signaller card. If you want to go into the practical side of that role, our article on slinging and signalling for lifting operations goes through it step by step.

Marking and Safe Working Loads

Under LOLER:

All lifting machinery must be clearly marked with its SWL
Lifting accessories must be marked so the characteristics needed for their safe use can be identified
Equipment designed for lifting people must be clearly marked to say so

The SWL of a piece of equipment can change depending on how it is configured. When that happens, the machine must be marked with information showing how the configuration affects the SWL, usually on an indicator plate, a load chart or a certificate. Telehandler and mobile crane operators deal with this every day: boom angle, extension, radius and outrigger set-up all change what you can safely lift. Read the chart for the configuration you’re actually using, not the headline figure.

Lifting People

LOLER does cover lifting people, but raising and lowering people with equipment not specifically designed for it should only happen in exceptional circumstances, when less hazardous access isn’t practicable. Every such operation must be risk assessed, and only trained, competent personnel should carry it out.

Precautions include:

Edge protection and toe boards on working platforms
A suitable means of communication between the operator and the person being lifted
Daily inspections of the equipment by competent personnel
Marking equipment to show it is for lifting people, and how many it can safely carry
Safety gear, such as secondary ropes, in case the primary means of support fails
Adequate instruction and training for everyone involved

Thorough Examination and Inspection

Employers must make sure lifting equipment is thoroughly examined:

After installation and before first use
After assembly and before use at a new site or location
At least every 12 months for lifting equipment, or every 6 months for lifting accessories and equipment used for lifting people (or in line with a written examination scheme)
Whenever exceptional circumstances occur that could put the equipment’s safety at risk

Equipment should also be inspected by a competent person at suitable intervals between examinations.

If the examiner finds a defect, they must tell the employer immediately and confirm it in their report. The employer must act on it, and failing to do so is breaking the law. If the defect has to be fixed within a set timescale, the equipment must be repaired or replaced within that time and must not be used after it unless the defect has been put right.

For you as an operator, this means checking the equipment and accessories have a current thorough examination before you use them, and doing your pre-use checks properly every time.

Stop the Job

Planning, competent people and correct equipment all matter, but one principle sits above all of them:

“Personnel are aware that they must stop the job if they are in any doubt about safety.”

Whatever card you hold, red or blue, you have the right and the duty to stop a lift you’re not happy with. A good Lift Supervisor will back you up.

How CPCS CPD Mastery Fits Into This

LOLER questions come up across nearly every lifting category, and they’re easy marks if you know your examination intervals, SWL rules and the roles on a lift. CPCS CPD Mastery gives you 4,000+ practice questions across 43 plant categories, each with a detailed explanation of why the answer is right. Mock tests mirror the real test format. 5 plant calculators help with load and lifting maths, and 8 quick reference guides put key legislation like LOLER, PUWER and CDM in your pocket.

Download CPCS CPD Mastery today and get LOLER sorted before your next test.