There are many good reasons why owners of lifts should maintain their lifts, the following is a simple overview:

1. In Victoria, Worksafe requires that all lifts in commercial applications undergo routine maintenance and an annual safety check. Commercial lifts are all lifts that are not in a single residence.
2. As maintenance and annual safety checks are mandated by Worksafe, insurers will also require documentation for services completed and the annual safety check. If there is an injury involving the lift or, worse, involving the coroner, maintenance and annual safety check documentation will be central to an investigation and apportioning liability.
3. Safety is the primary reason for maintenance and the annual safety check. Routine maintenance ensures that the basic operations of the lift are working as designed and minor adjustments are made to items like doors to remove trip hazards. Annual safety checks confirm that emergency back up equipment is working by engaging safety gear, testing rupture valves and slack rope switches, amongst other items, to prevent catastrophic failure and severe injury.
4. Lift reliability is an obvious reason why lifts should have routine maintenance. The number of service visits per year is determined by the type of lift, number of trips the lift does and its application. To ensure reliability, service visits will, potentially, include a wide range of minor adjustments and cleaning of items inside the shaft. Cleaning removes dust and grit that may prevent electrical contacts being made or impeding the operation of fine mechanical operations. Without maintenance lifts will eventually stop.
5. Ride quality will eventually be affected by lack of maintenance. Lack of lubrication or build up of dirt on rollers will result in vibrations and “jerky” movements that can be quite scary to passengers. A common concern from users, as a result of poor maintenance, is poor levelling at landings with slow stopping, constant re levelling, doors not opening or trip hazards.
6. Repair costs are generally reduced by keeping the working parts of the lift clean, lubricated and adjusted when required. Lift repairs can be very costly and sometimes take weeks waiting on parts.
7. Quality lifts should give many years of reliable service if well maintained. If servicing is not done as required a lift will become increasingly unreliable and have its working life significantly shortened. Lift replacements are very expensive.

In conclusion, money spent on maintenance will ensure passenger safety, a comfortable ride quality, lift reliability, reduces repair costs and extends the working life of a lift.

Published: March 5, 2026