Lifting Accessories Inspections

Lifting accessories are the components that connect a load to lifting equipment: slings, chains, shackles, eyebolts, hooks, lifting beams, and spreader beams. Under LOLER 1998 they are a distinct regulatory category with their own, shorter default interval: at least every 6 months, against 12 months for most other lifting equipment, unless an examination scheme drawn up by a competent person sets different intervals.

We provide independent lifting accessories inspections across Kent, London, Essex and throughout the UK through our network of qualified Engineer Surveyors, working separately from any supply or maintenance arrangement for the accessories we examine.

How often do lifting accessories need a thorough examination?

Lifting accessories must be thoroughly examined by a competent person at least every 6 months under LOLER 1998 Regulation 9(3), or in line with a written examination scheme. This is more frequent than the 12-monthly interval for most other lifting equipment, reflecting how heavily accessories wear.

Why accessories are examined more often than equipment

LOLER Regulation 9(3) sets two default intervals. Lifting equipment used to lift people, and all lifting accessories, are thoroughly examined at least every 6 months. Other lifting equipment, the machinery that does the lifting, is examined at least every 12 months, unless a written scheme of examination specifies otherwise.

The shorter interval for accessories is not arbitrary. Accessories are handled constantly, dragged across floors, dropped, exposed to sharp edges, chemicals, and weather, and moved between jobs far more than the equipment they serve. A sling can be sound at one examination and unfit six months later. The 6-monthly cycle exists because the failure modes accumulate quickly and are easy to miss without a systematic check.

Lifting equipment vs lifting accessories: the distinction

LOLER draws a clear line between the two, and it matters because it sets the examination interval:

If you need the machinery examined rather than the accessories (cranes, hoists, runway beams, lift trucks and the like), see our lifting equipment inspection service, which covers the 12-monthly side of LOLER Regulation 9. Most sites need both: the equipment on its interval and the accessories on theirs.

Lifting accessories we examine

Our Engineer Surveyors examine the full range of below-the-hook accessories found on commercial, industrial, and construction sites:

• Chain slings, wire rope slings, and fibre or round (webbing) slings, including multi-leg assemblies
• Shackles, master links, and connecting hardware
• Eyebolts, pad eyes, and lifting points
• Hooks (self-locking, latched, and swivel) and hook blocks
• Lifting beams, spreader beams, and modular lifting frames
• Plate and beam clamps
• Personnel and patient slings rated for lifting people, checked against the manufacturer's discard criteria

What a thorough examination of accessories covers

A thorough examination of a lifting accessory is a statutory safety assessment, not a quick visual glance. On every accessory the surveyor checks, as applicable to the type:

• Identification and traceability: the accessory can be matched to its examination record
• Safe Working Load (SWL) marking present and legible
• Wear, stretch, deformation, and distortion against the discard criteria
• Webbing and stitching condition on soft slings: cuts, abrasion, chemical or heat damage, and load-bearing seam integrity
• Chain elongation and individual link wear measured against discard limits
• Hook throat opening, tip distortion, and latch operation
• Eyebolt and shackle thread condition, pins, and terminations
• Corrosion, heat damage, and chemical attack across the whole accessory

Because these failure modes develop with handling rather than with hours of use, an accessory that passed six months ago is examined on its own merits every time, never assumed sound because it looks familiar.

The pre-use check is not the thorough examination

Two different activities get called "checking the slings", and they are not interchangeable. The pre-use check is the look the user gives an accessory before it goes on the hook: is it the right accessory for this load, is the SWL marking there, is there visible damage, is it in date. The thorough examination is the statutory assessment by a competent person under LOLER Regulation 9(3): at least every 6 months, or at the intervals set by an examination scheme.

The statutory duty is the thorough examination. LOLER does not set out a separate user pre-use check as a numbered requirement, but HSE guidance is explicit that the examination regime does not remove the need for it: INDG422 states that the options LOLER gives on thorough examination do not replace the necessity for operators to carry out checks to lifting equipment and accessories before use. The same guidance notes that accessories such as chains and slings will not normally need the interim inspections that LOLER Regulation 9(3)(b) allows for, provided they are getting both a thorough examination at the right interval and a proper pre-use check.

The practical consequence is the one that catches sites out. A current examination report does not make an accessory safe to use today. A sling can be cut, shock-loaded or chemically attacked in a single shift and be unfit long before its next examination falls due, which is exactly what the pre-use check exists to catch. Equally, a diligent pre-use check does not discharge the LOLER duty: it is not carried out by a competent person within the meaning of the Regulations and it produces no report.

Examination after exceptional circumstances

The periodic examination is not the whole duty. Whether accessories are examined every 6 months or under an examination scheme, LOLER Regulation 9(3)(a)(iv) also requires a thorough examination each time that exceptional circumstances which are liable to jeopardise the safety of the lifting equipment have occurred. That is an additional trigger sitting alongside the periodic examination, and it applies to accessories the same way it applies to the machinery.

The Regulation states the test rather than listing the events. HSE guidance gives the worked examples: have lifting equipment thoroughly examined following exceptional circumstances, for instance if it is damaged or fails, is out of use for long periods, or if there is a major change in how it is used that is likely to affect its integrity. On accessories that typically means:

• Damage or failure in service: a shock load, a dropped load, a sling dragged over an edge, heat or chemical exposure
• A long period out of use: accessories returning from extended storage before going back on the hook
• Modification or repair affecting the load-bearing parts
• A major change in how the accessory is used, where the new duty is likely to affect its integrity

The judgement of whether circumstances are "exceptional" rests with the duty holder, and the trigger is whether safety is liable to be jeopardised rather than whether damage is visible. Where it is genuinely unclear, the accessory is better quarantined and examined than kept in service on an assumption. If something has happened to your accessories between scheduled visits, tell us what occurred and we will advise whether an out-of-cycle examination is the right response.

Records and the report

Every thorough examination is followed by a written report under LOLER Regulation 10, recording the accessories examined, the date, any defects, and the competent person's identification. Where a defect presents an existing or imminent risk of serious personal injury, it must be reported immediately and the accessory withdrawn from use until put right.

The report of thorough examination for a lifting accessory must be kept available for at least two years under LOLER Regulation 11. We issue reports digitally so they can be filed, shared with insurers, and retrieved during an HSE visit without delay.

Colour-coding and quarantine: industry practice, not regulation

Many sites run a colour-coding system (a paint mark, tag, or coloured tie that changes each period so anyone can see at a glance whether an accessory is in date) and quarantine any item that fails or is overdue. These are sensible, widely used operational controls, but they are industry practice, not a legal requirement. What LOLER requires is periodic thorough examination by a competent person, on the 6-month default or at an examination scheme's intervals, and the written report that follows; a colour system helps you manage that duty on the shop floor, but it does not replace it.

Independent examination

A thorough examination carries most weight when the person carrying it out has no stake in the accessories being passed: no supply relationship, no maintenance contract on the same items. Our Engineer Surveyors examine accessories independently of any such arrangement. See why independence matters in statutory inspection for the structural case under HSE guidance L113.

Related inspections

• Lifting equipment inspections: the 12-monthly examination of the machinery itself (cranes, hoists, runway beams, lift trucks)
• Crane inspections: cranes and their lifting gear
• Warehousing & Logistics: slings, chains, and dock-yard accessories
• Construction: site lifting accessories, eyebolts, chain blocks
• What counts as lifting equipment under LOLER: the full legal definition and the equipment/accessory line
• LOLER inspection checklist: what a competent person checks

Frequently Asked Questions

How often do slings need inspecting under LOLER?

Slings are lifting accessories, so they must be thoroughly examined at least every 6 months under LOLER Regulation 9(3), or in accordance with a written examination scheme drawn up by a competent person. This applies to chain, wire rope, and fibre or webbing slings alike.

Do shackles and eyebolts need a LOLER examination?

Yes. Shackles, eyebolts, pad eyes, and similar connecting hardware are lifting accessories under LOLER. They are examined on the same basis as slings and lifting beams, at least every 6 months unless an examination scheme sets different intervals, regardless of how robust they look.

What is a lifting accessory?

A lifting accessory is any component used to connect a load to lifting equipment but which is not part of the machine itself: slings, chains, shackles, eyebolts, hooks, lifting beams, spreader beams, and plate clamps. LOLER treats accessories as a distinct category: they are thoroughly examined at least every 6 months, unless an examination scheme drawn up by a competent person sets different intervals.

Are accessories examined separately from the crane or hoist?

Yes. Lifting accessories have their own examination cycle, independent of the equipment they are used with. A crane on a 12-month examination interval still needs its slings, shackles, and lifting beams thoroughly examined at least every 6 months, unless an examination scheme covers them and sets different intervals.

Who can inspect lifting accessories?

A thorough examination must be carried out by a competent person: someone with the practical and theoretical knowledge and experience to assess the accessory and free from pressures that could affect their judgement. We examine accessories independently of any maintenance or supply arrangement.

Is colour-coding of slings a legal requirement?

No. Colour-coding and quarantine tagging are widely used industry practices for tracking which accessories are in date, but LOLER itself does not require a colour-code. The legal duty is the thorough examination by a competent person, at least every 6 months unless an examination scheme sets different intervals, and the written report that follows. The colour system is an operational aid, not the compliance itself.

How long must lifting accessory examination reports be kept?

The report of thorough examination for a lifting accessory must be kept available for inspection for at least two years after it is made, under LOLER Regulation 11. We issue reports digitally so they can be filed and retrieved without delay.

Do lifting accessories need marking?

Yes. Lifting accessories must be marked with their Safe Working Load, and where the SWL depends on the configuration, with enough information to determine it safely. Illegible or missing identification and SWL markings are among the most common reasons an accessory is failed at examination.