Frequently Asked Questions

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Forklift training - FAQ

How much do the forklift training courses cost?

All forklift training courses are quoted individually. We believe it is our responsibility to ensure that we supply the correct category and level of training – this is best achieved by careful discussion.

How do I book a training course?

Having chosen and discussed the training you require, simply phone, email or use our online form to contact us.

How can I be sure I am booking the correct course?

  • Email us a photo of the lift truck and/or the truck's rated capacity plate
  • Let us know the make and model number of the truck
  • Look at previous certificates

Do you have a local forklift training centre?

The service we offer takes place on your premises. Let us save you time and money travelling to an off-site location to learn on a truck you'll likely never use again.

When do I pay?

We ask for a 25% deposit to secure the days chosen for training and then the balance is due once the training is completed. All certification is sent out after full payment has been cleared.

What forms of payment can I use?

We accept BACS bank transfers and all major credit cards including, Visa/Delta/Electron, MasterCard/Eurocard, Maestro, and American Express. Debit cards (also known as bank cards) are accepted if they have a Visa or MasterCard logo. Credit/Debit card payments can be taken over the phone or online, using our secure PayPal payment gateway.

Will the instructor be accredited by a recognised accreditation body?

Of course! Your instructor will be ITSSAR accredited, please feel free to inspect all documents prior to the commencement of training.

Are South Coast Forklift Training insured?

Absolutely! We are fully covered with public liability and professional indemnity insurance.

Who or what is ITSSAR?

ITSSAR is the acronym for the Independent Training Standards Scheme and Register. Founded in 1991; they are one of the four founding members of the Accrediting Bodies Association (ABA), they recognise, approve and accredit a diverse range of courses throughout the UK including construction plant operation, forklift operation, crane operation, lifting, rigging, slinging and signalling.

What do we need to supply to have South Coast Forklift Training visit our site?

A room large enough for students and instructors to work in, sufficient space to carry out practical assessments and testing. Operators will require PPE as per their company’s risk assessments (safety shoes are compulsory).

What happens after the training is finished?

Providing delegates complete the training and assessments to the satisfaction of the instructor they will receive an ITSSAR approved Certificate of Basic Training, an I.D. card with the courses they have been trained and successfully tested on, entry or editing on ITSSAR's TOPS database.

Where can I find your GDPR privacy policy and website terms and conditions?

We have extensive pages devoted to our GDPR privacy policy and website terms and conditions.

Ready To Get Started?

Choose the ITSSAR accredited training provider that will work with you to deliver high-quality forklift training at your business premises.

These more general frequently asked questions are taken from the Health and Safety Executive's website.

I have never had any formal training to drive a lift truck. What are the legal requirements?

Your employer has a general duty under section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 to provide information, instruction, training and supervision to ensure the health and safety of their employees. Under the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 employers are required to ‘ensure that all persons who use work equipment have received adequate training for purposes of health and safety, including training in the methods which may be adopted when using the work equipment, any risks which such use may entail and precautions to be taken’. The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 also place duties on employers to provide training. By not providing you with any training at all, your employer could be breaking the law. Rider-operated lift trucks include the requirements for basic lift-truck training.

I have moved jobs and lost my lift truck training certificate. Can I get a copy from HSE?

There is no state system for training lift truck operators as there is for drivers on the public highway. There is therefore no central organisation which holds copies of training certificates. To obtain a duplicate of your certificate of basic training you will need to contact the training provider who trained you and issued the original, or your previous employer, or the body which accredited the training. If you cannot obtain a duplicate then your new employer may wish to have you assessed and re-tested.

It is over three years since I did my basic lift truck training. My employer has refused to send me on refresher training. Is he obliged to provide additional training?

There is no specific requirement to provide refresher training after set intervals, but even trained and experienced lift-truck operators need to be re-assessed from time to time to ensure they continue to operate lift trucks safely. In addition to routine safety monitoring, re-assessment might be appropriate where operators have not used trucks for some time, are occasional users, appear to have developed unsafe working practices, have had an accident or near miss, or there is a change in their working practices or environment.

What is the minimum age at which people can operate lift trucks?

Lift truck operators should be over the minimum school leaving age (MSLA), except in ports where they must be at least 18 years old.

There are particular definitions of people by age in health and safety law:

  • a young person is anyone under eighteen years of age;
  • a child is anyone who is not over compulsory school age (i.e. he or she has not yet reached the official age at which they may leave school). This is generally referred to as the minimum school leaving age.

The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 require you to assess the health and safety risks to all your employees and to identify what you need to do to comply with your legal duties to prevent or control those risks and ensure your employees' health and safety. Under the Regulations you have particular responsibilities towards young people:

  • to assess risks to all young people under 18 years of age, before they start work;
  • to ensure your risk assessment takes into account their psychological or physical immaturity, inexperience, and lack of awareness of existing or potential risks;
  • to introduce control measures to eliminate or minimise the risks, so far as is reasonably practicable.

Children below the MSLA must not be employed in industrial undertakings such as factories, construction sites etc except when on approved work experience schemes.

Do drivers of lift trucks have to undertake a medical, and if so, when?

At present HSE is not prescriptive on medicals for fitness to drive lift trucks and there is no legislation relating directly to this topic.

We have adopted the standards published by the Drivers' Medical Unit at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) and these can be found at DVLA - At a Glance guide to the current medical standards of fitness to drive

These standards should be applied and adapted in line with any risk assessment carried out by the employer/dutyholder. Each person's fitness for operating a lift truck should be judged individually, with an underlying emphasis on matching the requirements of a particular task with the fitness and abilities of the driver.

For most work, a standard equivalent to that for the Group 1 entitlement (DVLA medical standards) would be appropriate.

More stringent activities, such as working in a particularly demanding environment, working at night, moving highly toxic or explosive materials etc, would probably be more appropriate to the Group 2 entitlement.

Applying the principle of individual assessment of fitness should ensure that people with disabilities are not disadvantaged but competence in an emergency must always be considered.

What is HSE's position on wearing seat belts while driving lift trucks?

Since 2002, counterbalanced trucks, rough-terrain trucks and side-loading trucks, one side only, must be fitted with an operator restraining system (for example a seat belt). For older trucks which do not have one, you should fit a restraining system if the risk assessment indicates that there is a risk of the vehicle overturning and where the operator may be trapped between the truck and the ground. Where restraining systems are fitted they should be used.

Where a restraining system cannot be fitted, and the risks are sufficiently high, it will be necessary to use another lift truck which has such a system. Any lift truck fitted with a roll-over protective structure (ROPS) to protect operators from the risk of injury resulting from 180° or more roll-over should be fitted with a restraining system.

When can cages be used on lift trucks?

Working platforms or 'cages' on lift trucks are 'non-integrated', ie the lift-truck operator controls the movement of the truck including the cage. There are no controls in the cage to control the truck or cage movement.

The use of non-integrated platforms for planned work is not allowed as there is other purpose-built access equipment, such as the wide variety of mobile elevating work platforms (MEWPs), which are better suited to carrying out work at heights and are safer for the person using the platform. These are readily available for hire.

HSE Guidance Note PM28 'Working platforms (non-integrated) on forklift trucks' gives advice on the use of these and clarifies what the law says. It sets out the current standard for the use of non-integrated platforms, i.e. for 'occasional unplanned use' only.

PM28 also gives guidance on what 'occasional unplanned use' means. It clearly states that non-integrated platforms should only be used for work which is 'exceptional'. Exceptional work would include unplanned work such as the changing of a single lightbulb as an emergency job. This definition does not include stocktaking or planned maintenance work such as cleaning the light fittings in a factory, window cleaning etc. For jobs like that a mobile elevated work platform (MEWP) with integral controls, such as a scissor lift, should be used.

Still can't find an answer to your question? Call 01329 729 029 or send an email to [email protected]


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"Friendly, easy going instructor. Makes you feel relaxed. Very eloquent."

NO, Bordon, Hampshire

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"Great at explaining parts of the course so it was easier to understand."

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The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974

It shall be the duty of every employer to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all his employees.