“I’ve got my forklift licence.”

It’s a phrase heard regularly across warehouses, factories, construction sites and logistics operations. But here’s the problem: there is no such thing as a forklift licence in the UK.

That might come as a surprise to many forklift operators and employers. So, what do you actually need to legally and safely operate a forklift?

So, is there really a forklift licence?

No. Unlike driving a car on public roads, there is no government-issued forklift licence that allows someone to operate any forklift.

Instead, UK health and safety law requires employers to ensure that anyone operating material handling equipment (MHE), including forklift trucks, is adequately trained, competent and authorised to do so.

Forklift training is generally delivered by regulated training providers such as us, and results in a certificate of training or similar evidence of competence. This is sometimes informally referred to as a “forklift licence” or “FLT licence”.

The terminology may be convenient, but it can create confusion.

For a list of our most common forklift courses, please click here.

Why does everyone call it a licence?

The term “forklift licence” has become widely used because it provides a simple way of describing evidence that an operator has completed forklift training.

However, completing a training course doesn’t mean an operator has a permanent licence to drive forklifts.

Training demonstrates competence on particular types of equipment and under particular conditions. The employer must still assess the operator’s competence and authorise them to operate the equipment in their workplace.

What does the law actually say?

The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER) place duties on employers regarding the safe use of work equipment.

More specifically, LOLER and the HSE’s guidance on lift trucks are also important considerations depending on the equipment and how it is being used.

The HSE’s guidance makes it clear that lift-truck operators must be adequately trained and competent.

Training should cover the type of truck being operated, the working environment and the tasks the operator will be expected to undertake.

A certificate isn’t a licence to drive any forklift

One of the biggest misconceptions is that once someone has completed a forklift course, they can operate any forklift anywhere.

That’s not the case.

Forklift training is typically truck-specific. An operator who has trained to operate a counterbalance forklift shouldn’t automatically assume they are competent to operate a reach truck, rough-terrain telescopic handler or another category of truck without the appropriate training.

There may also be differences between workplaces.

An experienced operator moving pallets around a large warehouse may still require familiarisation when moving to a different site with different traffic routes, racking systems, floor conditions, pedestrian movements or operating procedures.

What about refresher training?

Another common myth is that forklift training simply “expires” after three years.

There isn’t a universal legal three-year expiry date for forklift training.

However, the HSE recommends that employers provide refresher training where appropriate. It is particularly important where an operator’s performance has deteriorated, there has been an accident or near miss, the operator has not used the equipment for some time, or there have been significant changes to the workplace or equipment.

Many employers use a three-year period as a sensible benchmark for reviewing operator competence, but this should not be confused with a legal expiry date.

What does an employer need to do?

Employers have an important role to play. Simply asking to see a “forklift licence” isn’t enough.

Employers should ensure that operators:

• Have received appropriate training.
• Are competent to operate the specific type of forklift.
• Understand the risks associated with the task and environment.
• Receive appropriate familiarisation when necessary.
• Are authorised to operate the equipment.
• Receive supervision appropriate to their level of experience.
• Receive refresher or additional training when required.

Keeping accurate training records is also important, as it provides evidence that appropriate steps have been taken to ensure operators are competent.

The bottom line

So, the next time someone says, “I have my forklift licence,” remember that there isn’t actually a government-issued forklift licence in the UK.

What they should have is appropriate training and evidence of competence, followed by authorisation from their employer to operate the relevant equipment.

Getting the terminology right isn’t just about semantics. Understanding the difference between a “licence”, training, competence and authorisation can help employers manage their legal responsibilities and, more importantly, help keep forklift operators and everyone working around them safe.

Don’t let the forklift licence myth put your workplace at risk.

If your business needs forklift training, refresher training or advice on operator competence and authorisation, speak to us today to ensure your operators have the right skills and knowledge for the equipment and environment in which they work.

Streamline Shipping Agencies Limited has been fined after a yard operative was struck by a forklift truck at its Aberdeen Harbour premises.  The employee suffered serious and life-changing injuries at the company’s yard.

An HSE investigation found the company failed to ensure adequate separation between pedestrians and vehicles during loading and unloading operations.

The 43-year-old man was working at Streamline’s premises at Palmerston Quay, Aberdeen, when he was struck by a reversing forklift truck driven by a colleague on 26 September 2024. The worker was on foot, unclipping the curtain side of an articulated trailer, when the rear nearside wheel of the forklift made contact with his right leg, pulling him to the ground.

The worker suffered multiple fractures to his right foot and lower leg, as well as a de-gloving injury, undergoing two surgical procedures and skin grafts. He has also required counselling because of the incident and has yet to return to work.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that Streamline failed to ensure its workplace was organised in such a way that pedestrians and vehicles could circulate safely. While the company had a traffic management plan in place, it lacked the necessary detail to ensure that loading and unloading – which routinely took place concurrently in the same area – could be carried out safely without putting employees on foot at risk from moving vehicles.

HSE concluded it was reasonably foreseeable that an employee on foot faced a risk of being struck by a moving vehicle when both the pedestrian and driver were concentrating on their respective tasks near each other.

Following the investigation, an Improvement Notice was served on the company. In response, Streamline made a series of improvements to its traffic management arrangements to the satisfaction of HSE.

By law, employers must ensure traffic routes can be used without putting workers at risk. Guidance on managing vehicle movements in the workplace is available on the HSE website.

Streamline Shipping Agencies Limited, of Streamline Terminal, Blaikies Quay, Aberdeen, AB11 5PU, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 17(1) of the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 and Section 33(1)(c) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

The company was fined £146,700 and ordered to pay a Victim Surcharge of £11,000 at Aberdeen Sheriff Court on 22 May 2026.

HSE Inspector Nicky Smith said:

“This was a serious and wholly avoidable incident that has had a profound and lasting impact on this worker’s life.

“Employers have a legal duty to ensure that pedestrians and vehicles can move safely within their workplaces, particularly in busy areas where loading and unloading takes place.

“Having a traffic management plan is not enough if it does not contain the detail needed to protect workers on the ground.

“We will not hesitate to hold companies to account when they fall short of their obligations.”

Are your staff adequately trained?

You may have staff who know how to operate, but have they been adequately trained?  If they’ve had no formal training before, they may not have the necessary knowledge and understanding around how to operate a truck safely around pedestrians.

Our RTITB accredited forklift training courses ensures that operators not only understand how to operate a forklift but also how to consider those around them including pedestrians and other workers.   To see our range of courses, please click here.  

Our high-quality training is the best way to ensure that your forklift operators have been told everything they need to know to keep themselves and all others on site safe.

The family of a much-loved man have spoken of his ‘horrific’ death at work following the prosecution of his employer.

Chris Keegan was killed on 20 November 2023 while working for Hessle Plant Ltd as a delivery driver at its main depot in Castleford, West Yorkshire. Chris’ widow Dianne said: “Chris was a wonderful, kind and generous man, who would do anything he could for anyone. He especially did anything he could for me.

“My heart is broken, and I will never get over losing my husband in such a horrific way. He never deserved to die in such tragic circumstances.”

Leeds Magistrates’ Court heard that Mr Keegan had been tasked with returning the forklift truck to a customer’s site in Sheffield following repair work to its transmission.

As he reversed the vehicle onto the trailer shortly after 6am, it fell from the side of the trailer bed. Mr Keegan was thrown from the seat and became trapped between the chassis of the forklift and a neighbouring trailer.

Mr Keegans wife and two of his stepdaughters arrived at the depot as the emergency services fought to save Chris’ life, but tragically his injuries proved fatal, and he passed away at the scene.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the forklift had not been subject to a full inspection to ensure it was safe to operate. Examination of the forklift by HSE after the accident found several other defects which should have been identified and rectified before it was operated.

The investigation found that whilst Hessle Plant Ltd would undertake a full pre-delivery inspection on forklift trucks being delivered to new customers, at the time of the accident the company did not do this for machines being returned to existing customers.

HSE also found that many of the company’s employees would rarely wear seatbelts when operating forklift trucks, and there was no system in place for monitoring and enforcing seatbelt use on site.

HSE guidance states that employers should ensure that work equipment – such as a forklift truck – has been properly maintained and inspected if necessary to ensure it remains in a safe condition to operate. HSE guidance also states that where seatbelts are fitted to a counterbalance forklift truck, they should be used.

Hessle Plant Ltd, of Carrwood Road Industrial Estate, Glasshoughton, Castleford, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The company was fined £433,550 and ordered to pay £8,146.80 in costs and a £2,000 victim surcharge as Leeds Magistrates’ Court on 26 November 2025.

Speaking after the hearing HSE inspector, David Beaton, said: “This was a tragic and preventable death. Mr Keegan was placed at undue risk by operating a machine with underlying maintenance defects, which he would have been unaware of when attempting to reverse the forklift in the dark onto a trailer with an exposed edge.

“Had Mr Keegan been wearing the seatbelt provided, the accident he suffered would likely not have proven fatal.

“Every year there are fatal accidents caused by machinery which has not been properly maintained or inspected, and forklift truck drivers not wearing seatbelts. This case should underline to all businesses, which hire out or operate forklift trucks, the importance of keeping machinery in efficient working order and ensuring the use of seatbelts by forklift drivers is appropriately supervised.”

To ensure everyone operating a forklift truck knows how to do so safely, ensure they receive high quality, accredited training with us today.  For a list of our forklift courses, please visit our website.

Our thoughts are with Chris’s family whilst they deal with the ongoing pain this awful incident.