Ask ten warehouse managers whether their stillages fall under LOLER and you will get ten different answers. Some assume every steel container in the building needs a six-monthly inspection certificate; others assume LOLER has nothing to do with stillages at all. Both positions can land you on the wrong side of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) — and, far more importantly, on the wrong side of a serious incident.
The truth sits in between, and it hinges on one question: is the stillage lifted while it is loaded? Get that distinction right and the rest of the compliance picture falls neatly into place. This guide, written from the shop floor and design office at Lowe Stillages & Cages, sets out exactly when the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 apply to stillages, what “thorough examination” really means, how to specify and mark equipment correctly, and the practical habits that keep an operation both legal and safe.
LOLER and PUWER: two regulations, one goal
Two pieces of UK legislation govern the equipment used in almost every material-handling operation, and they overlap rather than compete:
- PUWER 1998 — the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations. These apply to virtually all work equipment, a stillage included. PUWER requires that equipment is suitable for its intended use, kept in good repair, inspected where deterioration could cause a risk, and used only by people who have been properly informed and trained.
- LOLER 1998 — the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations. These sit on top of PUWER and apply specifically to lifting equipment and lifting accessories. LOLER adds stricter duties around strength and stability, positioning and installation, clear marking of safe working loads, and — the headline requirement — periodic thorough examination by a competent person.
Every stillage you own is covered by PUWER. Only some are covered by LOLER. Knowing which is which is the foundation of getting compliance right.
When does LOLER actually apply to a stillage?
LOLER is triggered by lifting, not by storage. A stillage that is filled, stacked on the floor, moved by pallet truck at ground level and emptied is work equipment under PUWER — but it is not lifting equipment. It never leaves the ground under load in a way that would put a person at risk from a falling load.
The picture changes the moment a loaded stillage is lifted — by crane, hoist, forklift boom attachment, or by integral lifting eyes and a chain sling. At that point the stillage is either lifting equipment in its own right or is acting as a lifting accessory, and the full weight of LOLER applies to it.
The reliable test
Ask yourself these questions about how the stillage is used in practice, not how it was originally sold:
- Is the stillage lifted while it contains a load, with a person able to be beneath or beside it?
- Does it have integral lifting points — lugs, eyes, or designed slinging positions?
- Is it slung, craned, or lifted on a boom rather than simply carried on forks at low level?
If the honest answer to any of these is yes, treat the stillage as lifting equipment and apply LOLER. A useful nuance many operators miss: a forklift lifting a stillage on its tines is a routine PUWER lift of a load, but a stillage lifted on a fork-mounted crane jib or lifting beam via integral eyes is a LOLER lift. Our range of certified lifting stillages is engineered specifically for the second scenario, with proven lifting points and documented load testing.
Design: LOLER-compliance starts on the drawing board
You cannot inspect safety into a stillage that was never built for lifting. The most important compliance decisions are made before a single item is fabricated. When a stillage is destined to be lifted under load, the following are non-negotiable design considerations.
Strength, stability and a defined safe working load
LOLER requires lifting equipment to be of adequate strength and stability for each load, with an appropriate safety factor. Every liftable stillage must therefore have a clearly established Safe Working Load (SWL), verified rather than estimated. At Lowe we validate designs using Finite Element Analysis and back it up with physical load testing, so the rated capacity reflects real behaviour, not an optimistic guess.
Integral lifting points and secure attachment
Designated lifting points must be positioned to keep the load balanced and to accept the intended sling, hook or beam without side-loading. The centre of gravity, the way the load sits inside the container, and the securing of any drop-front or removable panel all feed into safe lift geometry. Products such as our Liftable Mesh Stillage and Liftable Sheeted Stillage are supplied with load testing included precisely because the lifting interface is part of the certified design, not an afterthought.
Materials, welds and finish
Structural integrity under repeated lifting cycles depends on material selection, weld quality and corrosion protection. A weld that would happily survive static storage can fatigue under the dynamic loads of repeated craning. Correct steel grades, sound welding and a durable protective finish extend safe service life and reduce the risk of a defect developing between examinations.
Thorough examination: the heart of LOLER compliance
For stillages that fall within LOLER, the single most misunderstood duty is thorough examination. This is a detailed, systematic examination carried out by a competent person — someone with the practical and theoretical knowledge and independence to assess the equipment properly. It is not the same as a quick pre-use visual check, and it cannot be signed off by whoever happens to be nearest.
How often?
Under LOLER, the standard intervals for thorough examination are:
- Every 6 months for lifting accessories, and for lifting equipment used to lift people.
- Every 12 months for other lifting equipment that does not lift people.
- In accordance with an examination scheme drawn up by a competent person, where that scheme specifies different intervals based on risk.
- After exceptional circumstances — damage, a heavy impact, long periods out of use, or major repair — regardless of the calendar.
A risk-based scheme is often the most sensible route for stillages, because a container lifted daily in an abrasive foundry environment simply does not carry the same risk profile as one lifted occasionally in a clean warehouse.
What a thorough examination covers
- Visual inspection of frames, corner posts, bases, joints and welds for cracks, dents, deformation and corrosion.
- Lifting points and attachments — eyes, lugs and any securing mechanisms checked for wear, distortion and secure fixing.
- Load-bearing verification against the marked SWL, checking the stillage has not been modified or overloaded in service.
- Non-destructive testing (NDT) where a defect is suspected in a critical weld or member and visual checks alone are not conclusive.
Where a defect that could pose a danger is found, LOLER requires it to be reported promptly and the equipment taken out of service until it is put right. Damaged units should be quarantined, not quietly returned to the pool.
Marking, identification and traceability
You cannot manage what you cannot identify. Both good practice and LOLER point to clear, durable marking on every liftable stillage:
- Safe Working Load clearly displayed so operators can see the limit at a glance and avoid overloading.
- A unique identifier — a serial number or asset code — so each unit can be tracked through its examination and repair history.
- Manufacturer information for traceability back to the original specification and certification.
Robust marking supports the whole compliance chain: it links a physical stillage to its records, its last examination and its remaining safe capacity. Durable industrial label holders are a small investment that makes identification survive a hard industrial life.
Records, documentation and certification
Compliance that isn’t documented is compliance you can’t prove. LOLER requires you to keep the report of thorough examination and to make it available to inspectors. Practical record-keeping for a stillage fleet should include:
- The report of thorough examination for each in-scope stillage, including the date, the competent person’s identity and qualifications, and any defects found.
- Load test and design certification from the manufacturer, establishing the rated SWL.
- Pre-use inspection logs and any interim inspection records under your PUWER regime.
- Repair records showing what was done, by whom, and any re-examination that followed.
Retain these for the life of the equipment, or as long as your examination scheme requires. When you buy from a manufacturer, insist that certification comes with the product — reputable suppliers of engineered steel stillages supply it as standard, and it saves you reconstructing paperwork later.
Safe use in the lifting operation itself
Certified equipment and current paperwork still depend on the lift being planned and carried out properly. LOLER requires lifting operations to be planned by a competent person, appropriately supervised and carried out safely. In day-to-day practice, that means:
Plan the lift
- Confirm the load is within SWL, taking account of the stillage weight plus contents.
- Check load distribution and centre of gravity — an uneven load is the most common cause of a stillage tipping mid-lift.
- Confirm the lifting accessory (sling, chain, beam) is itself in-date for examination and rated for the load.
Match the accessory to the stillage
Compatibility between the lifting equipment and the stillage is a LOLER requirement, not a convenience. The hook, clamp or beam must engage the designated points fully and securely. Where a dedicated lifting frame is specified, use that frame — improvising with a shorter sling changes the sling angle and can quietly exceed the point loading the design allows.
Coordinate and communicate
Where a slinger and a crane or forklift operator work together, agree clear signals and a briefing before the lift, keep people clear of the load path, and never lift over anyone. Simple, standardised communication prevents most struck-by incidents.
Special environments and industry-specific duties
LOLER applies universally across sectors, but the surrounding risks change with the environment. In hazardous atmospheres — flammable substances, explosive dust, or chemical exposure — LOLER duties run alongside other regulations, and control measures (engineering controls, procedures, PPE) must be layered on top of the basic examination regime.
Regulated sectors add their own requirements. Our defence and military and nuclear handling customers, for example, work to documentation and traceability standards well beyond the baseline, and specialist products such as gas bottle safety cages must satisfy the handling rules for their specific contents. The principle is constant: LOLER is the floor, not the ceiling.
Certification and standards in 2026: UKCA first
For equipment placed on the UK (Great Britain) market, the UKCA mark is the primary conformity assessment route, and it should be treated as the default reference point for new stillages. Compliance is also underpinned by quality-management standards and independent accreditation — see our explainer on what UKCA certification is and why it matters and on UKAS-accredited management system certification. Buying from a UK manufacturer that holds and evidences these marks removes a major compliance risk before the stillage even arrives.
A compliance checklist for your stillage fleet
- Classify every stillage — is it lifted under load? If yes, it is in LOLER scope.
- Confirm each in-scope unit has a verified SWL, clearly marked, with load-test certification on file.
- Schedule thorough examinations at 6 or 12 months, or per a written examination scheme, plus after any damage.
- Give every unit a unique ID and keep a live register linking it to its records.
- Log pre-use checks and take damaged units out of service immediately.
- Plan and supervise lifts with competent people and compatible, in-date accessories.
- Keep documentation and make it available on request.
Get compliant equipment, built and certified in the UK
The cleanest way to stay on the right side of LOLER is to start with stillages designed and certified for the way you actually use them. As a UK manufacturer, Lowe designs, load-tests and certifies liftable stillages, cages, post pallets and bespoke handling equipment — with the documentation your compliance regime depends on supplied as standard.
If you are unsure whether your existing stillages fall under LOLER, or you need certified lifting stillages for a specific operation, our engineering team is happy to advise. Get a quote for a made-to-spec solution, browse our certified lifting stillages, or contact the Lowe team to talk through your requirements.