Accessible Goods Only Lifts (AGOLS): The Law & Levels of Safety

When a person enters a lift - whether to load it, unload it or just to travel in it - the question is whether they are entitled to believe that it offers an acceptable level of safety. Given that the function of the lift, whether manufactured to The Lift Directive or The Machinery Directive, is the same (i.e. to move goods from one level to another), would it not be reasonable to expect that the levels of safety would be the same? This paper will look at the different requirements against uncontrolled movement in the downward direction and will discuss the risks with reduced levels of protection, as well as the implications for persons in the car, including those who have to enter the car to maintain the said lift.