Most manufacturers and several aftermarket companies provide telematics systems which can be added to the trucks. Those will provide you with a screen on the truck which will ask you random daily check questions. But for everyone who doesn’t have that system, this is our attempt at a guide.

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So understandably, the first place to start on a forklift truck is the bit that does all of the lifting. So, first of all, if you lift the forks up or put them together and check across the forks for any deflection, and make sure that there isn’t any damage on the forks themselves. Moving on from that, the low backrest – if the truck is fitted with one – do the same. Stand to the side, check it’s not bent and check that none of the bolts are loose on the outside of the carriage. Finally, if your trucks got an attachment or a side shift fitted to it as well, check that the ram isn’t damaged or leaking. You can do that from either side – and if there’s an attachment fitted to the truck, check that none of the rams or hoses are damaged before you power the truck up because then you’re likely to get quite a bad hydraulic leak.

So once you’ve checked the front of the truck – the forks and the carriage – the next thing to check is the chains themselves. So again, you’re looking for any damage on the chains and importantly, you’re looked at the mast anchor points here. Make sure the pins are in place – above and below – and you can’t see it again, but any physical signs of damage. The mast itself. Check it. Look for any oil leaks below – always a tell-tale sign – or any metal shavings or anything like that which might indicate any damage to the truck.

Okay, so the next thing on the list and very importantly, are the wheels and the tyres. So if you carry out a visual check of the tyres all the way around, on each side of the truck and on the back. This is a three-wheeled machine – so only one wheel on the back – but obviously if it’s four, check all of them. Check for any damage to the tyre – on the inside and the outside – you may need to do this once, move the truck forward a little bit, then check it again. And also, check the wheel nuts and make sure that none of them are loose and make sure there isn’t any damage.

So, the next thing on the truck is the Overhead Guard. This is obviously designed to protect you, should the truck tip over or should something get dropped from a height and fall on top of the overhead guard. So, it’s very important that there’s isn’t any structural damage to an overhead guard. If you find anything – if you see a visible deflection – you shouldn’t use the truck. Next; the lights. So, make sure – turn all the lights on – make sure all the lights are functioning, because if you’re relying on those as a safety thing when you come through a warehouse door and the lights aren’t working and no one can see you then that’s very important too.

After you’ve checked the front lights, obviously check that the flashing beacon is working when the truck ignition is switched on, and also that the rear light works when the truck is in reverse – or permanently, if it’s wired in that way. While you’re at the back of the truck as well, check again the rear tyre and look around the sides of the truck for any physical damage that might cause an issue later on.

*Also check that the reversing bleepers are working.

Okay, so the next thing to check is the hydraulic functions of the truck. So lift the mast right up to its full lift height – which I won’t show you here because we’ll go out of shot. And also, tilt the mast backwards and forwards, and check that the top of it functions as well. This Toyota truck also has self-levelling forks, so there’s a separate switch on the tilt. Again, I’m going to check that that’s working and the masts are stopping and vertical – which they are.

Okay, so the final thing to check on the truck itself are the actual functions. So we want to check the steering is working. This truck actually has a steering wheel indicator, so I can see where the wheel is moving to as I’m turning it – because on a three-wheel you can’t see the wheel itself. The next thing we want to check is the handbrake. So we put the truck in drive and move forwards with the handbrake on – check that the truck is holding itself with the handbrake on. I’ll just lower the forks back down. The brakes themselves, in a safe place where you’ve plenty of room. Check that the breaks are working – so move the truck backwards and forwards gently and then check that the breaks are functioning properly. And then finally – and very importantly – check that the horn is working on the truck (BEEP).

If you find any defects, please report them to us and do not use the truck until we have confirmed the truck is safe.

Thank you for watching. If you have any questions, please refer to the operator’s manual for the machine or contact us at Locators.