CareHomeDeskCareHomeDeskThe Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 require that all patient hoists in care homes are thoroughly examined at least every six months by a competent person -- and this is distinct from routine servicing.
The Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 require that every patient hoist used in a care home is thoroughly examined by a competent person at least every 6 months. This duty falls on the employer, in practice the registered provider or manager, and applies to mobile hoists, ceiling track hoists and bath hoists alike. It exists because hoists are used repeatedly to move some of the most physically vulnerable residents in the building, and a structural or mechanical failure during a lift can cause serious injury, so the statutory interval is deliberately shorter than for most other work equipment.
A competent person under LOLER is someone with the practical and theoretical knowledge and experience to detect defects and assess their significance for the equipment's continued safe use. In practice this is usually an engineer accredited through a recognised scheme such as LEEA (the Lifting Equipment Engineers Association), employed either by the hoist manufacturer, a specialist LOLER inspection contractor, or an in-house engineering team with the relevant qualification. General handyman or facilities maintenance competence is not sufficient on its own; providers should ask any contractor for evidence of their specific LOLER examiner accreditation before relying on their reports.
Routine servicing, carried out on a manufacturer's recommended schedule, covers general maintenance such as lubrication, battery checks, cleaning and replacing worn consumable parts to keep the hoist reliable and within warranty. Thorough examination under LOLER is a distinct, legally required safety inspection that results in a formal written report and focuses on structural integrity and safety-critical function. A hoist can be well serviced and still be non-compliant if its LOLER examination has lapsed, so providers should hold and track both types of visit separately rather than assuming one covers the other.
Every thorough examination should produce a written report identifying the hoist, the date of examination, the competent person's details, any defects found, whether those defects present an existing or imminent risk to health and safety, and the deadline for any repair. This report should be filed on the equipment register alongside the hoist's identifying number, location and next due date, and should be readily retrievable, since CQC inspectors and HSE investigators will expect to see it produced promptly rather than located after a delay.
During inspection against the Safe key question, CQC routinely asks to see current LOLER examination certificates for hoists in use, and will check that the dates on display labels or certificates match the equipment register. A hoist without a visible current certificate, or a register with overdue entries, is treated as a compliance gap regardless of whether an incident has occurred, because it indicates the provider's oversight of a known safety-critical duty is not reliable.
Maintain a single equipment register covering every hoist, with automated reminders set at least a month ahead of each due date to allow time for booking and any follow-up repairs. Attach the current examination certificate or a summary label directly to the hoist so staff and inspectors can see its status at a glance, and withdraw any hoist from use the moment its examination lapses rather than waiting for the next scheduled maintenance visit. Reviewing the register at a standing monthly compliance meeting helps catch gaps before they become overdue rather than after.
CareHomeDesk gives you compliance checklists, maintenance logs, and contractor management tools built around exactly this kind of knowledge.