Sector statutory inspections

Statutory Inspections for Warehousing & Logistics

LOLER, PUWER, PSSR and COSHH LEV compliance from one independent inspection body.

A warehouse runs on examined equipment: the truck fleet on its thorough examination cycle, the racking on its annual expert inspection, the dock levellers and conveyors on risk-based PUWER intervals. Miss one date and the aisle stops.

SEIS examines the whole materials handling estate in one programme, from a single counterbalance truck to a multi-site fleet, with due dates tracked in the client portal.

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Independent & impartial
Competent engineer surveyors
Reports issued promptly

12-monthly

Standard thorough examination cycle for load-only trucks

6-monthly

Cycle for accessories and people-lifting MHE

Annual

Expert racking inspection HSG76 expects

After impact

Struck racking is inspected before reloading

Warehouse cover

3PLs, distribution centres and cold stores
Truck fleets, racking and dock equipment together
Examinations scheduled around shift patterns
Multi-site programmes with one report portal

What needs inspecting

What needs inspecting in a warehouse

Two regimes carry most of the load. LOLER puts every truck, MEWP and goods lift on a fixed thorough examination cycle. PUWER covers the racking, dock levellers and conveyors, where the interval is risk-based rather than a fixed statutory date, and where HSE guidance HSG76 sets the expectation of an expert racking inspection at least every 12 months.

Equipment	Regime	Statutory position	What you receive
Counterbalance and reach trucks	LOLER	Thorough examination at least every 12 months for load-only trucks	Report of Thorough Examination
Fork attachments and lifting accessories	LOLER	Every 6 months, examined separately from the truck	Report of Thorough Examination
MEWPs and order pickers	LOLER	Every 6 months because they lift people	Report of Thorough Examination
Telehandlers	LOLER	6 or 12 months as the competent person determines from use	Report of Thorough Examination
Goods lifts	LOLER	Thorough examination at least every 12 months	Report of Thorough Examination
Pallet racking	PUWER	Expert inspection at least annually per HSG76, plus inspection before reloading after any impact	Written record of inspection
Dock levellers and shelters	PUWER	Inspection at risk-based intervals, no fixed statutory date	Written record of inspection
Conveyor and sortation systems	PUWER	Risk-based intervals set from your risk assessment	Written record of inspection
Air receivers on wrapping and packing lines	PSSR	Examination to the Written Scheme, report within 28 days	Written Scheme certification and examination report

Racking has no fixed statutory examination date and no statutory certificate. The annual expert inspection is HSG76 guidance meeting the PUWER duty, and it produces a written record of inspection.

Sector compliance

Fixed cycles, risk-based intervals, and the gap between

The warehouses that fail audits rarely miss the big dates. They miss the boundaries: the fork attachment examined on the truck's 12-month cycle when it needed 6, or the racking upright struck in March and reloaded before anyone competent looked at it.

The truck is not the whole examination

A thorough examination that covers only the lifting components leaves the duty holder exposed under PUWER, because Regulation 6 requires inspection of the whole truck where deterioration creates danger. A complete examination covers both regimes in one report.

Attachments are the second gap. A removable attachment is a lifting accessory on the 6-month cycle even when the truck itself runs 12 months, so a fleet examined once a year can still be half out of date.

Racking is the third: any upright struck by a truck must be inspected before the bay is reloaded, whatever the date of the last annual inspection.

How SEIS runs a warehouse programme

One programme covers trucks, attachments, MEWPs, goods lifts, racking, dock equipment and any receivers on the packing lines, examined around shift patterns so aisles keep moving. Night and weekend visits are routine in distribution.

Reports arrive through the client portal with defect gradings and due dates tracked across sites, which is what a multi-site QSHE manager actually needs: one calendar, one evidence trail, no spreadsheet reconciliation before an audit.

Related services

Fork lift truck examinationsThorough examinations covering LOLER and PUWER together Storage racking inspectionsExpert racking inspections to HSG76 LOLER inspection servicesInspection, testing and certification for all lifting equipment PUWER regulations explainedRisk-based intervals and the record of inspection duty

Common questions

Warehousing & Logistics inspection FAQs

Do you cover third party logistics sites?

Yes. We run examination programmes for 3PLs, retailers' distribution centres, cold stores and manufacturers' finished goods warehouses, single site or national estate.

How quickly can you attend?

Usually within a few working days, and sooner where a truck or MEWP is out of service awaiting examination. Call 0330 043 8191 and we will work around your shift pattern, including nights.

How often does a forklift need a thorough examination?

At least every 12 months for a truck lifting loads only, and every 6 months for any removable attachment or accessory, or where the truck lifts people in a work platform. The full intervals are in our LOLER regulations guide.

Is an annual racking inspection a legal requirement?

The precise duty is PUWER: racking is work equipment that must be maintained and inspected where deterioration creates danger. HSE guidance HSG76 sets the expectation of an expert inspection at least every 12 months, and following it is the accepted way to meet the duty. There is no fixed statutory date and no statutory certificate.

What happens when a truck hits the racking?

The struck section is inspected by a competent person before it is reloaded, regardless of when the last annual inspection took place. Isolate the bay, offload it, and record the damage against the SEMA red, amber and green classifications.

Does the thorough examination cover PUWER too?

Ours do. An examination confined to the lifting components can leave the rest of the truck unexamined under PUWER Regulation 6, so we cover both regimes in a single report, in line with HSE guidance at hse.gov.uk.

Can you align a mixed fleet onto one calendar?

Yes. We set each item's statutory interval, then schedule visits so trucks, attachments, MEWPs and racking fall into a single programme with the fewest site visits that compliance allows.

What records should we hold for an audit?

The current Report of Thorough Examination for every truck, MEWP, goods lift and accessory, the written records of racking and dock equipment inspections, and evidence that defects were actioned. Our portal holds all of it against each asset.

Book statutory inspections for your Warehousing & Logistics operation

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