Forklift trucks are among the most dangerous equipment in any workplace. They account for roughly a quarter of all workplace transport accidents, and are involved in around eight deaths a year in Great Britain — often pedestrians rather than operators.
Training is what the law expects, and HSE sets out the standard in Approved Code of Practice L117, Rider-operated lift trucks: operator training and safe use. This page covers what that actually requires, which truck category you need, and the things employers most often get wrong.
There is no such thing as a forklift licence. That is HSE’s own wording, stated plainly in L117. What you get on completing training is a certificate, and there is no legal requirement even for that — though HSE encourages certificates as evidence that training took place.
The legal requirement is competence, plus written authorisation from your employer to operate. A certificate from a previous employer does not authorise you to drive a truck at a new one.
The three stages of training
L117 describes training in three parts. Most employers complete the first and stop, which is where the gap usually is.
Basic training
The course you book. Skills and knowledge to operate the truck safely — controls, stability, load handling, pre-use checks, pedestrian awareness — followed by theory and practical testing. Typically three to five days for a novice.
Specific job training
Your equipment, your loads, your site. Attachments, racking configurations, the particular vehicles being loaded, any site-specific procedures. This is the employer’s responsibility and it is not covered by the course certificate.
Familiarisation training
Supervised operation on the actual job before working unsupervised. The stage most often skipped entirely — a newly certificated operator put straight to work alone has not completed their training.
Why this matters after an incident. A certificate proves stage one happened. If stages two and three were never done and someone is injured, the certificate becomes evidence of what was missing rather than proof of compliance.
Which truck category do you need?
Training is category-specific. HSE is explicit that an operator trained on one type of truck cannot safely operate another without conversion training — and the same applies to attachments. Book against the machines your people actually use.
| Category | Where it is used |
|---|---|
| Counterbalance | The classic forklift. Warehouses, yards, loading bays. The most commonly trained category. |
| Reach truck | Narrow-aisle warehouse racking, where mast reach allows higher and deeper storage than a counterbalance. |
| Pedestrian-operated / pallet stacker | Smaller sites, retail stockrooms and light warehousing. Still requires training despite the operator walking rather than riding. |
| Variable reach / telehandler | Construction sites and agriculture. On construction, CPCS is usually the scheme expected rather than a warehouse certificate. |
| Very narrow aisle (VNA) | High-density warehousing with guided or wire-guided aisles. Specialist and considerably higher risk. |
| Order picker | Picking at height with the operator raised on the platform. Fall risk as well as stability risk. |
| Rough terrain, side loader, container handler | Timber yards, ports, construction and specialist logistics. Each is a separate category. |
Check what your certificate actually says. Where training was limited — for instance to lifting up to a certain height — the certificate should record that limitation. Operators should only work within what their certificate covers, and employers should read them rather than filing them.
Novice, experienced or refresher?
Novice
No previous experience. Typically three to five days depending on category. Training ratios matter — L117 suggests no more than three trainees per instructor per truck outside theory sessions.
Experienced operator
Shorter route for those already operating who need formal certification. HSE cautions against overestimating the value of undocumented experience — bad habits are learned as easily as good ones.
Conversion
Moving between truck categories, or adding an attachment. Shorter than a novice course but not optional — a counterbalance operator is not qualified on a reach truck.
Refresher
No statutory interval. Three to five years is the common convention, and sooner after an incident, a period away from the truck, or a change of equipment or site layout.
Forklift training questions
Do I need a forklift licence?
No, because there is no such thing. HSE states this explicitly in L117. What exists is a training certificate, which is evidence rather than a permit, plus written authorisation from your employer. People say “licence” out of habit, but it matters — a certificate does not entitle you to operate anywhere, and it does not expire in the way a driving licence does.
Which accrediting body should we use?
HSE no longer administers an accrediting bodies scheme, so accreditation is voluntary. Using an accredited training provider gives assurance that training meets the L117 standard, and certificates should quote the accreditation number, the accrediting body and the instructor’s registration number. Whichever body is used, the employer remains responsible for ensuring competence — accreditation does not transfer that.
How often is refresher training needed?
There is no legal interval. Many organisations work to three or five years, and accrediting bodies often set their own certificate validity. Refresh sooner if an operator has been away from the truck, after a near miss or incident, when equipment or the site changes, or where supervision suggests standards have slipped.
Does a forklift need thorough examination?
Yes. A forklift is lifting equipment, so LOLER requires thorough examination — generally at least every 12 months, or every 6 months where the truck is used to lift people. That is separate from daily pre-use checks and from routine maintenance under PUWER, and it is a common gap in smaller operations.
Can we train someone in-house?
Yes, provided the instructor is competent to train and test to the L117 standard — which normally means they have completed a recognised instructor course. In-house training is common in larger operations. Stages two and three, specific job and familiarisation training, are always the employer’s responsibility regardless of who delivers stage one.
Who is most at risk around forklifts?
Pedestrians, more often than operators. Separating people from trucks — marked routes, barriers, one-way systems, restricted areas — does more to reduce risk than any amount of operator training. Pedestrian awareness for the wider workforce is worth considering alongside operator certification.
On-site delivery is worth more here than on most courses. Training on your own trucks, in your own aisles, with your own racking and loads means stage two — specific job training — starts happening during the course rather than being left as a task afterwards.
It also removes travel time, is usually cheaper per head for a group, and aligns everyone’s certificate dates for the next refresher round.
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Related training
CPCS plant operator
PUWER training
LOLER training
Manual handling
Risk assessment
First aid
All health & safety courses
This page is general guidance and does not replace HSE Approved Code of Practice L117 or your own risk assessment.