Pallet Truck Safety – Best Use Practices (which every company and operator needs to know!)

Welcome to another blog post by team Go-EPT!  Your trusted go-to for all of your warehouse or operational setting needs here in the UK.  From manual pallet truck, electric pump trucks, to stackers, high lifters, scissor lift tables, heavy duty models, and so much more, we have equipment to suit your every need.

In this blog, we explore how to safely operate and store your pallet trucks and handling equipment in order to minimise causing hazards, accidents, or injuries.

Pallet Trucks, also known as Pallet Jacks or a Pump Truck, are one of the most frequently used pieces of industrial equipment in warehouses and operational settings here in the UK.

However, if they are not used correctly as per operator training, they can and do cause accidents and injuries in the workplace.

Pallet trucks are very easy to operate, and only require rudimentary training in order to to be able use one safely and effectively.

Injuries or accidents can however still occur. A good example of how this may happen is – Simply ignoring the basic safety regulations a pallet truck operator is taught during training is a very common factor, and something which can easily be avoided if basic safety is followed.

To warrant the safe use of your pallet trucks within your operational area, please follow these simple instructions:

Firstly, and most importantly…

In the UK, anyone who operates a pallet truck, be it manual or electric, needs adequate training. As per regulation 9 of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER) makes it very clear that an employer must provide adequate training for all persons using work equipment, and this includes pallet trucks – Regulation 9 of PUWER covers how a pallet truck should be used, the risks involved, and precautions to be taken.

Check your pallet trucks are in good working order…

Get in to the habit of always examining your pallet trucks before you use them.

Check for undue wear and tear, and make sure the hydraulics employed to raise and lower the forks are functioning correctly.  If in doubt, do not use the truck. You can contact us if you’d like us to come out to repair it for you.

Always use your brakes:

Many pallet trucks have a brake to ensure stopping of the truck is safely executed.

Some models however, have to be stopped manually by the operator – In this case, always ensure you have enough space when slowing down the truck, and be mindful in selecting the area you wish to stop the truck, ideally away from other people who may be working nearby.

Pallet trucks can gain speed when carrying loads, especially when they are heavy, so please allow for the fact that slowing the truck may take a little longer and need more area and space to come to a stop safely.

Always heed the load limit:

All pallet trucks have a load limit, which you should be able to find clearly marked on a label on the side of your truck.

This maximum capacity of a truck, which can be up to 5000kg on a heavy duty manual model for instance, needs to be strictly adhered to. 

If you overload a pump truck, it can cause it to tip over, potentially causing serious damage to the truck itself, the load, others working nearby, surrounding equipment, and the workspace.

There are some simple ways to avoid overloading – Your could choose a weigh-scale model which will easily weigh the load for you, or use weigh beams to simplify the weighing of palletised loads.

Always pull your truck, never push it:

This is so important – You must never push a pallet truck, that is not what they are designed for.  Doing so has the potential to cause serious harm to the operator, the truck, the load, and more importantly, others who may be working nearby.

It is vital that you only ever PULL a loaded truck to ensure increased transportability. 

There are other advantages in only pulling a truck, one being, pushing permits you to check for hazards ahead, such as others around you.

Avoid steep inclines:

It is common and good practice to avoid moving heavy loads up or down steep inclines. This will keep the truck and its load safely balanced whilst manoeuvring.

If you cannot avoid a ramp in your environment, you absolutely must keep the loaded pallet truck in front of you, forks points directly forwards away from you, whilst navigating up or down hill so that it remains balanced.

You should also ensure that the forks have approximately 5-6” ground clearance so that they do not get caught when you are manoeuvring the truck on a ramp.

Storing your handling equipment safely:

Once you have finished using the pallet truck, you must ensure that the forks are completely lowered and are pointing directly forwards (away from you). 

Always store your truck in your designated handling equipment storage area.

If you do not have a storage area or much space to store your equipment, just make sure that the truck is stored sideways, as close to a wall as possible, and that the forks are aligned straight forward parallel with the wall, so that they are not a hazard to anyone in the area.

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We hope this article gives you some insight in to how to safely use and store your pallet trucks.

However, should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our friendly technical team who will be happy to answer any of your queries. Our telephone number is 0333 7727726, or via email to info@go-ept.com.

Please browse our vast range of manual and electric pallet trucks, special trucks, stackers, highlifters, tow trucks, platform lifters, scissor lift tables, and all other warehouse handling equipment, to find a product which perfectly suits your needs.