Lifting People With Cranes: Man Basket Rules (UK)

Lifting people is the one corner of UK lifting law where the default answer is no. LOLER 1998 permits carrying people on equipment designed for lifting loads only where using safer, purpose-designed access — a MEWP, a scaffold, a hoist — is not practicable. Get that judgement wrong and everything downstream is non-compliant, however good the basket. This guide covers when man baskets are legitimate, the equipment and examination rules that change the moment people are on the hook, and what the lift plan must add.

The Legal Starting Point

LOLER Regulation 5 deals specifically with lifting persons. Equipment used to lift people must prevent them being crushed, trapped, struck or falling; a carrier must be used that is designed for the purpose; and — via the L113 ACOP — carrying people on equipment primarily designed for lifting loads is acceptable only in exceptional circumstances, where purpose-built access equipment is impracticable and the risk assessment supports it. "The MEWP costs more" is not impracticable; "no MEWP can reach over the live railway from the only available standing" may be.

When a Man Basket is Legitimate

• No practicable alternative — documented consideration of MEWPs, scaffolds, hoists and rope access first. This reasoning belongs in the lift plan, because it is the first thing an inspector asks for.
• A purpose-designed, rated carrier — a manufactured man-riding basket with its own SWL, marking and documentation. A materials skip with a scaffold board across it has put people in prison.
• A machine authorised for man-riding — the crane or telehandler manufacturer's documentation must permit personnel lifting, with the duty typically de-rated (commonly to 50% of chart capacity for cranes on man-riding duties) and specific configuration requirements applied.
• Enhanced controls in place — harnesses secured to designated anchor points inside the basket, continuous communication, hoist restraint/free-fall protection, and a rescue plan that works if the machine fails with people in the air.

The Examination Clock Changes

The moment equipment lifts people, its statutory thorough examination interval halves: every 6 months rather than every 12, for the machine and the carrier alike — the same interval as lifting accessories, covered in full in our thorough examination guide. A crane with a current 12-month report is not compliant for man-riding if that report is more than 6 months old.

What the Lift Plan Must Add

Personnel lifting is always treated as a complex lift, planned by an experienced Appointed Person. On top of the standard contents of a lift plan, expect: the impracticability justification; the basket's documentation and attachment method; the de-rated capacity check; trial lift and function checks before anyone boards; communication and emergency-lowering arrangements; the rescue plan; tightened wind limits; and named, briefed personnel only.

Telehandlers and Excavators

The same logic applies with extra caution. Telehandler man-riding requires an integrated or manufacturer-approved platform with the correct load chart — a pallet of people on the forks is never lawful. Excavators are not personnel-lifting machines in normal circumstances at all: object-handling duties under LOLER excavator rules do not extend to people.