Lift Release Training – Questions Answered
Lift release training is crucial for all owners and operators. You will find Insights below into the most frequently asked questions about lift entrapment. Keep reading to learn more.
What is the legal position regarding lift passenger release?
Under the Lift Operating and Lift Equipment Regulations (LOLER) there is a duty on owners/operators of lifts to ensure that provision is made for the safe release of trapped passengers in lifts.
The Health and Safety Executive is a good source for understanding more about your legal obligations in relation to passenger lifts. HSE Passenger Lifts and Escalators
What as a lift owner/operator should you be doing to satisfy the obligations under LOLER?
Suitable arrangements for the routine release of people trapped in lifts include:
– Ensuring there are suitable communications in lifts. This will enable so that persons trapped to contact a rescue service.
– Ensuring the emergency lighting in the lift car is working correctly.
– Providing trained staff able to release people who are shut in a lift. The lifts must be risk assessed and staff must be properly trained before being authorised to carry out lift releases. Alternatively, providing a lift release service through a lift engineering or similar company
– Distributing information to lift users so that they know what to do if they get trapped in a lift
What about the local Fire Brigade, can I call them to help with passengers trapped in a lift?
Firemen do not have a legal obligation to release trapped lift passengers. Furthermore, Fire Brigades are moving away from attending calls as a first response. Unless it is a real emergency of course. They see it as an unnecessary drain on resource which could be used to attend more essential emergencies.
Some Fire Brigades charge for being called out if there are an excessive number of calls.
Why does my lift maintenance company refuse to undertake safe lift passenger release training?
It may seem odd, when the lift company that is maintaining the equipment refuse to carry out passenger release training. However, there are many lift companies that will not offer this service.
Mostly, the reason behind their refusal is that they do not want to be liable if an incident occurs because of the method they have undertaken during the passenger release training.
To mitigate that liability, they would need to have the correct procedures in place to ensure that lift passenger release training is only carried out by suitably competent and experienced personal and that the training follows the correct procedures.
For whatever reasons, many lift companies are not willing to set up the correct procedures to offer safe lift passenger release training.
What are the advantages of having properly trained personnel?
This goes towards satisfying your obligations under the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations.
Rapidity of Response: If you have your own staff on site, they can attend to passengers trapped in lifts almost immediately.
The maintenance contract you have with your lift servicing company may or may not provide for responses to lift trap-ins. If they do, they will almost certainly have qualifying terms like ‘best endeavours’ to meet those response times. This is understandable to some degree as there may be influences outside of their control e.g. traffic hold-ups.
What is the definitively correct procedure for correct Lift Release Training?
In the UK this is detailed in British Standard 7255:2001. Pertinent clauses of that Standard are given below.
Clause 4.1.3: All persons who are authorised to carry out safe release of trapped passengers should receive specific training.
Clause 4.1.4: The competency of those trained should be documented and assessed annually. The competencies achieved and the type of equipment the training was carried out should be documented.
Clauses 4.8 and sub clauses: This deals with general procedures for the safe release procedures.
Does The Lift Consultancy lift release trainin follow BS7255
Our training is fully in accordance with this Standard
How many personnel can be trained at each session and how long does the training take place?
We will train up to 6 people per session. This is because there is often limited room in plant areas or machinery spaces and part of the training involves a demonstration of procedures. With too many training delegates the demonstration may not be affective.
Depending on how many people are in the session and how many lifts are being trained on, the session usually will last typically 3 to 4 hours.
What does the lift release training involve and will certificates be issued?
The lift release training goes through four stages. The first stage is classroom based, the second is a demonstration of the procedures on the equipment, the third stage is when the delegates carry out the training supervised by the trainer and finally, there is a test to confirm that delegates understand the main points relating to their training.
Individual certificates are issued to each delegate, detailing the training that has been undertaken and the type and specific designation of individual lifts they have competence to carry out safe lift passenger release on.
How soon can training be carried out?
If it is half or a day’s training we can usually organise this within 7 to 10 days.
Training for more delegates and/or on greater numbers of lifts/sites may take longer to organise. If you can send us details we will let you know.
I think I would like to proceed with lift release training, what do I do next?
Find out more about our lift release training, or for more information send us an email, give us a call or complete the contact form to find out more about our passenger release training course. Let us know the number of trainee delegates and the location, number and type of lifts to be trained on. We can then assess how long the training will take.
We will get back to you within 24 hours, if not the same day with a training proposal, detailing the extent of the training, the cost and our availability.
