Tow Tractor Inspections

What tow tractor inspections are required?

A tow tractor or electric tug is work equipment under PUWER. It must be suitable for the train it pulls, maintained in a safe condition, and inspected where deterioration — worn couplings, weak brakes, damaged tyres — could injure someone in the aisle.

There is no LOLER thorough examination for a machine that only tows. LOLER applies if the unit also lifts. Frequency of recorded checks follows risk assessment: daily use in a busy warehouse usually means a pre-shift look, not a once-a-year service sticker.

HSE workplace transport guidance expects drivers to carry out basic safety checks before they use the vehicle, and a system for reporting faults. Coupling and uncoupling have to be done with parking brakes on. Training still sits under PUWER; a completed sheet does not replace it.

These products record the site check on the tug. They do not inspect the trailers behind it.

What should a tow tractor pre-use check cover?

Do the check before the first coupling of the shift.

The Tow Tractor Inspection Books are written for tow tractors and tugs. The product listing covers:

• Chassis, tow hitches and trailer connections
• Steering, directional controls and emergency stop
• Fluids, battery condition on electric tugs, wheels, tyres and brakes

Confirm the hitch closes and locks, the pin or jaw is not worn through, and the emergency stop kills travel. Walk the intended route if you can — a tug that steers well on the flat can still lose a trailer on a ramp.

Trailers, carts and dollies wear on their own castors and couplings. Check them, then record them on the trailer book if that is how the site is set up. One sheet on the tug does not cover a five-trailer train.

How the Good to Go inspection system works

The tag sits on the handle or at the cab opening, where the next driver takes hold.

1. Complete the tow tractor checklist at the start of the shift.
2. Put the top copy in the status tag so the tug shows as good to go or do not use.
3. Leave the carbon copy in the book as the depot record.
4. Seal the tag so last night’s sheet cannot cover a hitch found worn this morning.
5. After a snatch load, a collision or a battery change, complete a new sheet before the next train leaves.

Daily kits match a start-of-shift record on a high-use fleet. Weekly kits suit a recorded weekly inspection where that is what the risk assessment has set. Neither kit is an annual engineer’s inspection.

Holders and the inspection station keep books at the charge bay so the pad is not living in a different tug.

Choose the right tow tractor inspection products

The printed item for this machine is the inspection book. The rest is shared Good to Go hardware.

• Tow Tractor Inspection Books – 25 Checklists — carbon-copy pre-use sheets for tow tractors and tugs.
• Create Your Own Inspection Books – 25 Checklists — blank books if a house form, pedestrian tug or autonomous tug is not covered.
• Equipment Inspections – Daily Checklist Kits — select the tow tractor option. Checklists, tags, seals, wallet and pen.
• Equipment Inspections – Weekly Checklist Kits — tow tractor option for a weekly recorded inspection.
• Good To Go Safety Status Tag and Anti-Tamper Seals (Pack of 100) — fit on the handle or cab.
• Weather Resistant Inspection Holder, Check Book Wallet & Pen and Equipment Inspection Book Dispenser — keep the current book at the tug park.
• Inspection Information Station and Equipment User Manuals – Document Holder — wall storage for books and manufacturer instructions.

An agricultural tractor, a warehouse trailer or a pallet truck has its own book.

Who these products are for

They are for people who pull trains indoors and in yards, not for farm tractors on the field:

• Operators of electric tugs and platform tow tractors
• Warehouse, manufacturing and airport logistics teams running trailer trains
• Supervisors collecting books at shift change
• Facilities teams with a small tug fleet between buildings
• Hire desks issuing tugs with a consistent check method

If the same site also runs trailers or counterbalance forklifts, keep those on their own Good to Go books.

Tow tractor inspection FAQs

Does a tow tractor need a LOLER thorough examination?
Not if it only tows. PUWER still requires maintenance and inspection. LOLER applies if the machine lifts.

How often should the book be completed?
Before use on a busy shift is the usual pattern. Increase the recorded interval where ramps, tight aisles or heavy trains wear the hitch and brakes faster.

Does this book cover the trailers as well?
No. It covers the tractor and the coupling on that machine. Use the trailer inspection book for the trailed units.

Can I use the agricultural tractor book on a warehouse tug?
No. The machines and the failure points are different.

Where should the status tag go?
On the handle or cab entry, where the next operator will see it before they couple up.

Do these products replace driver training?
No. PUWER still requires people to be trained to use the tug and to couple safely.

Free UK mainland delivery on orders over £50. Trade discounts and bespoke options are available for depot packs or a different checklist layout.