Last reviewed: October 2026
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Forklifts and other lift trucks need checking before they are used on every shift. This free forklift pre-use inspection checklist is for warehouse, distribution and production supervisors and the operators who drive counterbalance, reach and other powered industrial trucks. One run is one operator’s check of one truck at the start of one shift. It records the truck and confirms the operator is authorised to drive it, then works through the visual checks with the power off, the checks for the truck’s power source, and the operational checks with the truck running: seat belt, horn, lights, brakes, steering, controls, lift and tilt. The result decides what follows. A defect that affects safety opens an out-of-service phase that keeps the truck parked until the supervisor approves its return. Every check ends with the supervisor’s review and the truck parked safely at the end of the shift.
OSHA’s powered industrial truck standard says trucks shall be examined before being placed in service, at least daily, and after each shift where they are used round the clock. HSE guidance for rider-operated lift trucks asks the operator to check the truck at the beginning of each shift, following the vehicle handbook, and to document the results. Both make the same point about what happens next: a defect is reported straight away, and a truck that is not safe is taken out of service until it is repaired.
The pre-use check is one of three different jobs. The planned service is an engineer’s, usually counted in hours run. The thorough examination of the lifting parts is a competent person’s, at least every 12 months in the UK. HSE is clear that regular inspections and scheduled services are not a thorough examination. This checklist is the operator’s job on every shift, with a place to confirm the other two are in date. A road vehicle’s walkaround check belongs in the Fleet Vehicle Inspection Checklist, and the service programme for every asset in the Preventive Maintenance Checklist.
Asks: is this truck safe to use today?
When: before the truck is used, on every shift it works.
Output: a signed check, defects reported to the supervisor, and the truck taken out of service if a defect affects safety.
Asks: what needs adjusting, lubricating or replacing before it wears out?
When: at the intervals in the manufacturer’s handbook, which for most lift trucks are counted in hours run.
Output: a service record and the next service due.
Asks: are the mast, chains, carriage, forks and tilt mechanism safe to keep using?
When: in the UK at least every 12 months, every 6 months if the truck lifts people, or as an examination scheme sets.
Output: a report of thorough examination, kept for at least two years.
Seven phases follow one truck through one operator’s check at the start of a shift. Phase 3 shows only the checks for the truck’s power source: electric, LPG or diesel. Phase 6 appears only when a defect affects safety, and the truck stays out of service until the supervisor approves its return.
The power source chosen on the first task decides which checks appear in Phase 3. Every due date counts from the shift start.
Walk round the truck before switching on. Look and touch; never reach between the mast uprights.
Only the checks for this truck’s power source appear: battery and charger for electric, cylinder and gas for LPG, fuel for diesel, and engine fluids for LPG and diesel.
Seated, belted and in a clear area, with the truck switched on. Stop and report anything that does not work as it should.
The result decides what follows. A defect that affects safety takes the truck out of service and opens Phase 6.
Shown only when a defect affects safety. The truck stays out of service until the supervisor approves its return; nobody uses it in the meantime.
The supervisor reviews every check, not only the ones with defects, and the truck’s record is kept up to date for the engineer and the next operator.
Both countries put the daily check on the operator and the repair decision on someone else. The US writes it into a federal standard, 29 CFR 1910.178. In Great Britain the duties come from the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER) and the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER), and HSE’s Approved Code of Practice and guidance L117 sets out how to meet them for rider-operated lift trucks. Use the table to set your own site rules; it is not legal advice.
| Topic | United States (29 CFR 1910.178) | United Kingdom (HSE guidance L117, PUWER, LOLER) |
|---|---|---|
| When to check | Before the truck is placed in service and at least daily; after each shift where trucks are used round the clock (paragraph (q)(7)) | At the beginning of each shift, by the operator, following the vehicle handbook, with the results documented (L117 paragraph 162) |
| What to check | The standard does not list items. Operator training covers any vehicle inspection and maintenance the operator will be required to perform ((l)(3)(i)(J)), and nameplates and markings are kept legible ((a)(6)) | Typically tyres and wheels, wheel nuts, brakes and steering, fluid levels or the battery and charger, lifting and tilting, hydraulic leaks, the overhead guard and load backrest extension, forks, chains, horn, lights and mirrors (L117 paragraph 162) |
| Defects | Reported immediately and corrected. A truck not in safe operating condition is removed from service, and repairs are made by authorised personnel ((q)(1), (q)(7)) | Defects that might affect safe operation are reported to the supervisor, and a truck with a safety-critical defect is not used until the fault is put right (L117 paragraphs 162 and 172) |
| Written record | The standard does not say the daily examination must be written down. The employer certifies each operator’s training and evaluation ((l)(6)) | A documented pre-shift check. There is no legal requirement to keep a record of maintenance checks, but one that is kept must be up to date (L117 paragraphs 161 and 164) |
| Operator | Trained and evaluated before operating, except a trainee under direct supervision; an evaluation at least once every three years ((l)(1), (l)(2), (l)(4)) | Written authorisation from the employer for the truck types the operator was trained on; nobody operates without it except a trainee under close supervision (L117 paragraphs 67 and 68) |
| Thorough examination | 1910.178 sets no periodic examination beyond the daily one | Lifting parts thoroughly examined by a competent person at least every 12 months, every 6 months if the truck lifts people, or under an examination scheme; the report kept for at least two years (LOLER regulation 9, L117 paragraph 165) |
Seat belts. HSE says that since 2002 counterbalanced trucks, rough-terrain trucks and side-loading trucks have had to be fitted with an operator restraining system, such as a seat belt, and that a restraint that is fitted should be used. 1910.178 does not mention seat belts, so follow the truck manufacturer’s instructions and your own site rules.
Defects found at a thorough examination follow their own rule. Under LOLER regulation 10 the competent person tells the employer straight away about a defect that is or could become a danger, and the employer must not use the truck before the defect is put right. Where a defect involves an existing or imminent risk of serious personal injury, the competent person also sends a copy of the report to the enforcing authority.
A daily recurring schedule starts a check for each truck before the shift begins, assigned to its operator, with every due date counted in minutes from the shift start. A truck whose check is not finished shows as an open checklist on the Reports Grid.
The power source chosen on the first task shows the battery and charger checks for an electric truck, the cylinder and gas checks for LPG, and the fuel checks for diesel. A clean check hides the defect tasks. Operators can complete it in a phone browser, with photos of any defect.
A truck with a defect that affects safety waits on the supervisor. The return to service is assigned to them alone, and nothing after the approval step can be completed until they record a decision. Every defect, photo, repair note and decision is kept with who did it and when.
CheckFlow does not decide whether a truck is safe. That judgement belongs to the operator, the engineer and the supervisor. It makes sure the check happens on every shift, that defects reach the supervisor, and that a truck taken out of service stays out until someone signs it back in. CheckFlow for manufacturing shows how shift checks run alongside the rest of the floor’s routines.
Training and authorising new operators sits in the Warehouse Employee Onboarding Checklist. Repairs that need lockout run through the Equipment Maintenance Workflow Checklist, a single service visit through the Equipment Servicing Workflow Checklist, and the service programme for the whole fleet through the Preventive Maintenance Checklist. Vans and lorries have their own Fleet Vehicle Inspection Checklist.
Fleet Vehicle Inspection Checklist
Preventive Maintenance Checklist
Equipment Servicing Workflow Checklist
Warehouse Employee Onboarding Checklist
Job Hazard Analysis (JHA) Checklist
Describe the process in a sentence and the AI checklist generator drafts the phases and tasks for you.
On every shift it is used, before it is used. OSHA’s standard requires powered industrial trucks to be examined before being placed in service, at least daily, and after each shift where they are used round the clock. HSE guidance asks the operator to check the truck at the beginning of each shift. On top of that the truck needs planned servicing at the manufacturer’s intervals and, in the UK, a thorough examination of its lifting parts by a competent person at least every 12 months, or every 6 months if it lifts people.
HSE’s list for rider-operated lift trucks is a good start: tyres and wheels, wheel nuts, the parking brake, service brakes and steering, fluid levels on engine trucks or the battery and charger on electric ones, lifting and tilting, hydraulic leaks, the overhead guard and load backrest extension, the forks and chains, the horn, lights and mirrors. Add the seat belt, warning alarms and the data plate. Follow the truck’s handbook too, because it lists the checks the manufacturer expects for that model.
The operator who is going to use the truck, at the start of their shift. OSHA requires operator training to cover any vehicle inspection and maintenance the operator will be required to perform, and HSE’s basic training objectives include carrying out pre-shift checks. Operators report defects; HSE says they should not carry out repairs or adjustments unless they are suitably qualified and authorised. Repairs are made by authorised people, and in this checklist the supervisor decides when a truck goes back into service.
If the defect affects safety, the truck is not used. OSHA requires a truck that is not in safe operating condition to be removed from service, with repairs made by authorised personnel. HSE says a truck with a safety-critical defect should not be used until the fault is put right. Park it out of the way, take the key, tag it so nobody else drives it, and record the repair and who approved its return. A defect that does not affect safety is reported and booked for repair.
In the US, 1910.178 requires the daily examination but does not say it must be written down, though a written check makes a missed one easy to see. In the UK, HSE’s guidance is a documented pre-shift check, with the operator recording the results. HSE adds that there is no legal requirement to keep a record of maintenance checks, but a record that is kept must be up to date. A record also shows when the same defect keeps coming back on one truck.
No. HSE says regular inspections and scheduled services are not a thorough examination. Under LOLER the lifting parts of a lift truck, such as the mast, chains, carriage, forks and tilt mechanism, are thoroughly examined by a competent person at least every 12 months, every 6 months if the truck is used to lift people, or at the intervals in an examination scheme. The competent person issues a report, which HSE says the employer keeps for at least two years. The daily check confirms the examination is in date.
In the UK, where one is fitted, yes. HSE says that since 2002 counterbalanced, rough-terrain and side-loading trucks have had to be fitted with an operator restraining system, such as a seat belt, and that restraints that are fitted should be used. For older trucks without one, HSE says to fit one where the risk assessment shows a risk of the truck overturning and trapping the operator. 1910.178 does not mention seat belts, so in the US follow the manufacturer’s instructions and your site rules.
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