Glossary term
thorough examination
An independent safety examination of lifting equipment carried out at set intervals and reported in writing.
What it means
A thorough examination is a separate, independent check of whether the equipment is safe to keep using. It is not maintenance, and maintenance does not replace it. The examiner tests items such as suspension, brakes and safety gear, and issues a written report with any defects and timescales.
Where you see it
On the whole installation, typically every six months for equipment carrying people and every twelve months for goods-only equipment, or to a written scheme.
How it works
The report classifies findings by urgency. Immediate defects mean the equipment is taken out of use until they are put right; others carry a date by which they must be resolved.
The value of independence is that the examiner is not the person who has been maintaining the lift, so nothing is assumed.
Why it matters
Examination reports are the paperwork most often missing when a building changes hands or a claim is made. Keeping them together with service records is straightforward and worth doing.
Commonly confused with
Thorough examination is confused with the service visit. It is an independent safety examination with a written report, usually at six or twelve month intervals depending on what the lift carries. A service provider maintaining the lift is not a substitute for it, and neither is a maintenance report.
Wear, service and lifespan
Reports carry defect categories and timescales. A defect requiring immediate action means the lift comes out of use now; a defect with a date means work must be complete by that date. Duty holders are expected to act on those timescales and keep the reports available.
Signs to watch for
- No examination report on file, or an out-of-date one.
- Defects listed with dates that have passed.
- The examination interval has been exceeded.
- Reports and service records held by different parties.
- A defect closed off without a record of the repair.
Troubleshooting thorough examination
A report lists a defect with a deadline
What it usually means: Work must be planned and completed by that date
Safe check: Diarise the date, get a quote and keep the evidence of completion with the report.
No report can be found for the current period
What it usually means: A compliance gap
Safe check: Ask the insurer or examining body for a copy and check when the next is due.
The same defect appears in consecutive reports
What it usually means: Remedial work has not been done or has not held
Safe check: Raise it in writing with both the examiner's wording and the maintenance history.
How to report it
Keep examination reports, maintenance records and your own fault log together. When a defect is raised, reply in writing with what you will do and by when. That record is what protects the duty holder if the lift is ever investigated. When a defect is written in unfamiliar language, ask the examiner to restate it in plain terms and to confirm whether the lift may stay in use meanwhile. Do not rely on a verbal reassurance from anyone else. If the report says immediate, take the lift out of use the same day, put a notice on every landing, and arrange alternative access for anyone who depends on it.
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Related terms
Definitions that usually come up alongside thorough examination when you are describing a fault.
- maintenance
Planned, scheduled work that keeps equipment safe and reliable, separate from breakdown repairs.
Service and compliance
- safety gear
Mechanical jaws under the car that grip the guide rails and hold the car if it ever descends too fast.
Safety devices
- governor
A speed-sensing wheel in the shaft that triggers the safety gear if the car ever descends too fast.
Safety devices
- service visit
A scheduled attendance where an engineer works through the maintenance schedule and records the outcome.
Service and compliance
- goods lift
A lift built to move materials rather than people, with a rugged car, heavy-duty doors and, in many cases, no permission to carry passengers at all.
Lift types