If you operate ladders or stepladders for work purposes, its your legal duty to ensure they are suitable and safe for work and to conduct statutory and pre use inspections of them as required.
It’s therefore essential for you to ensure that ladder inspections are conducted regularly and in the correct way. This will protect you, your employees as well as your organisation.
But who can conduct ladder inspections? How often are they needed? And how are they done? In this article, we will take a look at answering these questions to provide you with everything you need to know about ladder inspection.
Why We Need Inspections
The importance of these inspections is directly connected to the high accident occurrence rate when working at height. Falls remain the second leading cause of unintentional injury death worldwide and the number one leading cause in the UK.
From statistics revealed by the Heath and Safety Executive (HSE), falls accounted for more than 30% of all fatal injuries. From the 150 fall-related cased investigated by HSE in a three year duration, 40% of fall from height occurred on ladders.
Ladder Inspection Training
Our Ladder User & Inspection Training will help delegates develop an understanding of effectively undertaking ladder inspections, looking at the legal requirements, common faults, steps to inspections, paperwork requirements and completion, and ways to act competently if a ladder is found unsuitable or unfit for use.
Ensure we are compliant with the law
Section 6 of The Work at Height Regulations 2005 requires all employers to assess risks and conduct ladder safety inspections in their respective work environments. These inspections must be conducted at regular intervals by a suitably competent person.
The law also stipulates that inspections must be performed following any event that may have affected the safe use of the ladders. It is crucial for employers to maintain records of all inspections in accordance with the regulations to prevent compliance issues.
In addition, employers and contractors must also refer to the requirements under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations (1999) (MHSWR), and Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER 1998).
Who can conduct inspections?
Ladder inspections should only be conducted by a competent person trained in ladder inspections. A competent person is someone who has the necessary Skills, Knowledge, Attitude, Training and Experience (SKATE) in ladder use and work
How often should ladders be inspected and records completed?
There is no legally mandated frequency that tells us when we must conduct our ladder inspections. However, the HSE and Ladder Association does provide us with recommendations. Pre-use checks should be conducted on ladders every time they are used, while formal visual inspections should be conducted and documented as often as required based on the ladders use and the risk involved.
As a general guideline, ladders used:
- Daily should be inspected every three months
- Weekly should be inspected every six months
- Less than monthly should be given annual inspections
Ladder Inspection Checklist
The ladder inspection process is a continuous cycle that starts from the moment you purchase/rent a ladder. This involves a detailed visual and physical inspection before and after using the ladder. If a ladder you inspected has problems, it must be quarantined or disposed of . This should include clearly marking the ladder, so that others know that it is unfit for tasks. It should also involve locking the ladder in a secure place.
Here is a ladder inspection checklist that details different parts and components of the ladder that require inspection.
Feet & End Caps
- Feet & top tips fitted, all present,secure, and correct
- Stile ends are undamaged
- All rivets and other fixings are present & secure
- No cracks, cuts, or holes
- Anti-slip surfaces are undamaged
Braces / Cross Tubes
- No excessive bending, bowing, or folding
- All rivets / other fixings are present and secure
- No cracks, cuts or holes in the cross tubes
- No denting that might compromise its strength
- No corrosion that might compromise its strength
- No rotation, wobbling, or twisting
Fixings
- No severe corrosion or wear – screws, bolts, and rivets are tight and in place
- No tell-tale holes where fixings may have been but removed
- No signs of wear or damage
Platforms
- No bending or twisting of upper surface
- No cracks, cuts or holes
- No significant denting that might compromise its strength
- Support bar and other attachments are secure and undamaged
- Linkage mechanism is present and opens/closes with no excessive play
- Anti-slip surface is undamaged and clean from contaminants
Rungs / Treads
- No swaging splits with all rungs present and secure
- No bends, bows or twists – creases, cracks, cuts or holes
- No significant denting that might compromise its strength
- Anti-slip surface is undamaged and clean from contaminants
- All rivets / other fixings are present and secure
Labels
- The labels must be securely attached
- They must be legible to the layman
Stiles / Frame Sections
- No bending, twisting, to stiles and frame section
- Hinging of the front to rear frame attachment is secure
- No creases, cracks, cuts or holes
- No significant denting that might compromise its strength
- No contaminants or dirt on stiles
- No significant corrosion on the components
- All end tips are correctly present and secure
- Stops, bushes, and restraint devices are present and undamaged
- Stabilisers are fitted where required – secure and undamaged
Locking catches
- All fixings are tightly in place. are tight and that there is
- No distortion of the stiles where the locking catches are attached
- No bending, twisting or corrosion present
- Locking catches lock and unlock correctly
Rung Hooks
- Rung hooks are all present and secure
- No displacement or looseness
- No signs of bending, cracks, cuts, or holes
- All rivets / other fixings are present and secure
- No significant corrosion of ferrous components
- The hooks fit easily on the rung
Restraint Devices
- No excessive bending, bowing, or folding
- No excessive force required to open/close restraint devices
- All rivets / other fixings are present and secure
- No cracks, cuts, holes or fraying
Guide Brackets
- Guide brackets are all present and secure.
- No displacement or looseness
- No bending, cracks, cuts or holes
- All rivets / other fixings are present and secure
- No significant corrosion of ferrous components
Zero Gravity Safety’s Ladder User & Inspection Programme is Ladder Association Certified
Although ladders are mainly used for short periods, they can lead to life altering or ending consequences. You must have appropriate knowledge and training to feel competent in carrying out the job without endangering yourself or others around you. To ensure you feel competent in using and inspecting ladders please look at our range of ladder courses here.
