LOLER 1998 and PUWER 1998. HSE intervals
What does forklift servicing cost?
Servicing and the LOLER thorough examination are two jobs, often sold as one. Servicing follows the manufacturer's schedule, with no statutory interval. The examination is a legal duty on the lifting parts, at HSE's intervals of 6 or 12 months.
Servicing and thorough examination: the two duties, side by side
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The most common and most expensive confusion in forklift maintenance is treating a service and a LOLER thorough examination as the same visit. They have different legal status, different intervals and different people doing them. This table separates them, then lists what actually moves the price of each.
Intervals and duties are taken from HSE's pages on thorough examinations and inspections of lifting equipment, safe lifting by machine, and PUWER, read on the updated date above. HSE's intervals are set by equipment type rather than by trade name, so the application to a particular truck is noted as such and should be confirmed with your competent person. We publish no price range: forklift servicing is quoted against fleet size, truck type, hours run, response time and what is bundled, and an invented average would mislead a buyer. The cost-driver rows are the factors engineers actually price against, with what to ask for so quotes are comparable.
| Item | Status | What it means for you |
|---|---|---|
| Routine service (oils, filters, brakes, adjustments) | Not a statutory interval | Follow the manufacturer's schedule, normally driven by hours run. PUWER requires the truck to be maintained in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair, and any maintenance log to be kept up to date |
| LOLER thorough examination, truck lifting loads only | Statutory, 12-month category | HSE specifies 12 months for all other lifting equipment, that is, equipment not used to lift people. Confirm the category for your trucks with your competent person |
| LOLER thorough examination, truck used to lift people | Statutory, 6-month category | HSE specifies 6 months for lifting equipment and any associated accessories used to lift people |
| Lifting accessories used with the truck (chains, slings, jibs) | Statutory, 6-month category | HSE specifies 6 months for all lifting accessories |
| Examination scheme drawn up by a competent person | Statutory alternative to the fixed intervals | You may examine at the intervals in a scheme drawn up by a competent person instead of the fixed 6 or 12 months. The scheme must specify parts, methods and intervals and be producible in writing |
| Thorough examination before first use, and after assembly at a new location | Statutory | Required unless the equipment has a Declaration of Conformity less than one year old and was not assembled on site |
| Daily pre-use checks by the operator | Expected practice | HSE lists daily checks for lift trucks among the checks users may need to make. These are not a substitute for thorough examination |
| PUWER inspection of the rest of the truck | Statutory where deterioration is likely | Where work equipment is exposed to conditions causing deterioration liable to result in dangerous situations, it must be inspected so faults are found in good time |
| Written report of thorough examination | Statutory | Must contain the information in LOLER Schedule 1, including the examination date, the date the next examination is due, and any defect that is or could become a danger |
- HSE states the specified intervals for thorough examination are 6 months for lifting equipment and associated accessories used to lift people, 6 months for all lifting accessories, and 12 months for all other lifting equipment, unless an examination scheme specifies other intervals.
- There is no statutory interval for routine forklift servicing. PUWER requires work equipment to be maintained in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair, and where a machine has a maintenance log, for that log to be kept up to date.
- A thorough examination must be carried out by a competent person, and HSE says this should not be the same person who undertakes routine maintenance of the equipment, as they would then be assessing their own maintenance work.
- Where a competent person finds a serious defect, they must report it immediately and verbally to the dutyholder, follow it with a written report, and send a copy to the relevant enforcing authority.
Cite this page
“Servicing and thorough examination: the two duties, side by side”, Forklift Servicing Cost, https://forkliftservicingcost.co.uk/ (updated 2026-08-14). Intervals and duties are taken from HSE's pages on thorough examinations and inspections of lifting equipment, safe lifting by machine, and PUWER, read on the updated date above. HSE's intervals are set by equipment type rather than by trade name, so the application to a particular truck is noted as such and should be confirmed with your competent person. We publish no price range: forklift servicing is quoted against fleet size, truck type, hours run, response time and what is bundled, and an invented average would mislead a buyer. The cost-driver rows are the factors engineers actually price against, with what to ask for so quotes are comparable.
Three steps
- Tell us the fleet, how hard it works and what you need covered. Two minutes, no account.
- We pass your details to forklift service engineers covering your postcode, and to no one else.
- They quote directly on servicing, thorough examination or both. Compare what is actually included, then choose or walk away.
Forklift Servicing Cost is a free introduction service. We pass your details to at most three forklift service engineers covering your area, who quote you directly. We may receive a fee from providers; you pay nothing and are under no obligation. We are not engineers and we are not a competent person for the purposes of LOLER: we are not affiliated with or endorsed by the Health and Safety Executive, and nothing here is legal or safety advice. Confirm the examination interval and category that apply to your specific trucks and attachments with your competent person.
Common questions
How much does forklift servicing cost?
There is no reliable single figure. Price turns on fleet size and site spread, truck type, hours run, breakdown response time, whether the LOLER thorough examination is bundled, and parts and tyres. Ask for a price per truck at your actual fleet size, with the planned visits stated and tyres and parts explicitly in or out.
How often does a forklift need a thorough examination?
Unless a competent person's examination scheme sets others, HSE's intervals are 6 months for lifting equipment and associated accessories used to lift people, and for all lifting accessories. All other lifting equipment is every 12 months. A truck lifting only loads is in the 12-month category; add a working platform and 6 months applies. Confirm with your competent person.
Is there a legal interval for forklift servicing?
No. Routine servicing has no statutory interval. PUWER requires work equipment to be maintained in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair, and any maintenance log to be kept up to date. In practice that means following the manufacturer's schedule, which is usually based on hours run.
Who can carry out a LOLER thorough examination?
A competent person, which HSE says is not defined in law but means someone with the practical and theoretical knowledge and experience to detect defects and assess their importance. They may be in-house provided they are sufficiently independent and impartial, but HSE says it should not be the same person who undertakes the routine maintenance of that equipment.
What happens if a defect is found?
For a serious defect, the competent person must report it immediately and verbally to the dutyholder. The written report follows, with a copy to the relevant enforcing authority. The report also records the date the next thorough examination is due, so it doubles as your diary entry.
Is this quote service really free?
Yes, free to you, with no obligation to accept any quote. We pass your details only to forklift service engineers covering your postcode, who quote you directly. We may receive a fee from those providers, which is how the service is funded.
Read next
The longer answers, with sources.
Forklift servicing cost: what drives the price of a service contract
What moves the price of forklift servicing: fleet size, truck type, hours run, response times, whether the LOLER examination is bundled, and how parts and tyres sit.
Forklift LOLER thorough examination: intervals and duties
What a LOLER thorough examination is, HSE's 6 and 12 month intervals, who counts as a competent person, what the written report must contain, and how it differs.
PUWER and forklifts: the duties on the rest of the truck
LOLER covers the lifting parts. PUWER covers the truck: suitability, maintenance in efficient working order, inspection where deterioration is likely, and training.
Forklift servicing contracts or ad hoc: which is cheaper
Planned maintenance contract, full maintenance or pay as you go: how each is priced, what gets excluded, and how to work out which is cheaper for your fleet and hours.
Sources
This site's own datasets, every figure quoted from its source and dated:
- The median published figure in the Forklift Hire Rate Benchmark is 84 GBP across 10 figures from 7 sources' own pages (range 49 to 110 GBP), read 11 November 2026.
- The median published figure in the Forklift Service Price Index is 135 GBP across 11 figures from 8 sources' own pages (range 90 to 431.50 GBP), read 11 November 2026.
- The median published figure in the Thorough Examination Price Index is 125 GBP across 3 sources' own pages (range 110 to 146 GBP), read 11 November 2026.
- HSE, thorough examinations and inspections of lifting equipment
- HSE, safe lifting by machine (LOLER and PUWER)
- HSE, PUWER overview
- HSE, maintenance of work equipment
- HSE, L117 Rider-operated lift trucks: operator training and safe use
- Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998
- Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998