Short answer. PUWER applies to all work equipment and requires it to be suitable, maintained, inspected, guarded and used by trained people. LOLER applies to lifting equipment only and adds the duties specific to lifting: planning and supervising lifts, marking the safe working load, and a thorough examination by a competent person at fixed intervals. Lifting equipment has to meet both. Everything else only has to meet PUWER.
If you are not sure which of your equipment needs what, that is exactly what a PUWER assessment settles.
What is PUWER?
The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998. They apply to every employer who provides equipment for use at work, to self-employed people whose work puts others at risk, to anyone who controls work equipment or how it is used, and to the equipment itself whatever it is: a drill, a lathe, a press, a conveyor, a van, a ladder, a forklift. The requirements are that equipment is suitable for the job, maintained in a safe condition, inspected where that matters, used only by trained people, and fitted with the guards, controls and isolation the risk calls for. The full explainer is what does PUWER stand for.
What is LOLER?
The Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998. They apply to any equipment used at work for lifting or lowering a load, and to the accessories used with it: cranes, hoists, forklifts, telehandlers, passenger lifts, vehicle lifts, patient hoists, lifting slings, chains, eyebolts. The requirements are that lifting equipment is strong and stable enough for the load, positioned and installed to reduce risk, marked with its safe working load, that every lifting operation is planned, supervised and carried out safely, and that the equipment is thoroughly examined by a competent person at set intervals.
What is the difference between LOLER and PUWER?
PUWER is the general duty and LOLER is the specific one. LOLER does not replace PUWER for lifting equipment; it sits on top. A crane has to meet PUWER for its guarding, controls, maintenance and operator training, and LOLER for its thorough examination, load marking and lift planning. The two sets of regulations were made on the same day in 1998 and the HSE's guidance, L22 for PUWER and L113 for LOLER, is written to be read together.
Does my equipment need LOLER or PUWER?
Ask one question: does it lift or lower a load? If no, PUWER only. If yes, both. That puts forklifts, hoists, cranes, lifts, tail lifts, vehicle lifts, patient hoists and all the slings and chains used with them under LOLER as well as PUWER. It leaves lathes, presses, saws, conveyors that only move things horizontally, hand tools and vehicles that do not lift under PUWER alone. Two common edge cases: a conveyor with an incline is not lifting equipment unless it is lifting the load as its purpose, and a forklift's forks are lifting equipment even when the truck is mostly used for moving.
How often is a LOLER thorough examination needed?
Every six months for equipment that lifts people and for lifting accessories, every twelve months for other lifting equipment, or at the intervals set out in a written examination scheme drawn up by a competent person. Also after installation and before first use, and after anything that could affect its safety, such as damage, a long period out of use or a change of location. Between thorough examinations, LOLER also asks for inspections at whatever interval the risk requires; for lifting equipment that replaces the PUWER inspection, while the rest of PUWER still applies.
Who is competent for LOLER and PUWER?
For a LOLER thorough examination, a competent person with the practical and theoretical knowledge of the equipment to detect defects and judge their importance, and enough independence to report honestly. That is usually an engineer from an inspection body or an insurer. For PUWER inspections, competence depends on the equipment: a trained operator for the daily check, a maintenance engineer or external assessor for the formal one. For the PUWER assessment that sets both regimes up, see the PUWER assessment page.
What records do LOLER and PUWER require?
LOLER requires the report of every thorough examination to be kept until the next report or for two years, whichever is later. Any defect that could become a danger has to be reported to you straight away, and a defect that is an existing or imminent risk of serious injury is also reported to the enforcing authority. PUWER requires inspection results to be recorded and kept until the next inspection. One equipment register that holds both, with the LOLER examination dates and the PUWER inspection dates against each item, is what inspectors expect to see.