19/08/2021 Passenger Lift Alert - Health and Safety Authority

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Passenger Lift Safety Alert

As a result of a recent fatal accident involving a passenger lift, the Health and Safety Authority (HSA) wish
to bring the following safety concerns to the attention of those persons who are in control of and also
those who maintain passenger lifts.

Safety Concern
An issue has been identified with a number of passenger lifts when in motion between floors. Should
pressure be applied to open the doors the following occurs:

 the lift car will stop,

 the doors on the affected passenger lifts will then go through an opening cycle exposing persons to a
potential hazard,
 the doors will then close again, once they are not obstructed,
 the lift will continue to its destination as normal.

Should this happen, the person in the passenger lift should remain clear of the opening.

The HSA have commenced an urgent inspection programme to ascertain the extent and nature of the
passenger lifts involved.
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Competent Persons
Competent Persons, either those carrying out 6 monthly thorough examinations (often an insurance
engineer surveyor/independent inspection company) or those carrying out maintenance, in addition to
their normal programme, and taking care of their own safety, should pay particular attention to the
following;

 Wear on components affecting lobby and lift car doors.

 The distance between the lift car door and the wall of the lift shaft.
 The operation of the inner and outer lift doors to ensure that doors operate as normal.

Employers and Persons in Control

Employers and persons in control should ensure checks are carried out by competent persons to ensure
their lift/s comply with required standards.

Should issues arise as outlined above, controls should be put in place to ensure the safety of all
persons using the lift.

The Safety Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 places duties on employers and persons who have
control to any extent of a place of work to ensure that the means of access to and egress there from and
any article provided for use are safe and without risk to health.

Those responsible for the operation of passenger lifts should also ensure that they have a current report
of thorough examination (required every 6 months). They should also be in possession of a log-book
where details of any repairs or checks have been recorded.

Users of Passenger Lifts

Whilst passenger lifts provided for use in general are a safe method of access & egress, care should
always be exercised when they are being used by vulnerable persons such as children. Should the doors
of a passenger lift open unusually as described above, then all passengers should stay clear of the doors
and wait for the lift to complete its journey. The matter should then be brought to the attention of the
person in control of the place of work.

References
 EU Directive 95/16/EC 29th June 1995
 EN 81-1:1998 + A3:2009

March 2014

 2020
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 2019
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 2016
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 Call: 1890 289 389 (tel:1890289389)

9:00am to 3:00pm, Monday to Friday. 

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