Maintaining Roller Shutter Doors: Your Legal Responsibilities and Key Regulations
Our guide to maintaining roller doors will help you understand your legal responsibilities, ensuring they don’t pose a risk to employees or the public.
If you have roller shutter doors, high-speed doors, or any other automated doors or barriers at your business premises, you’ll understand their importance for security, access control, and even temperature regulation. However, their significance extends beyond function – as a business owner, you have legal obligations that must be met.
Key Legislation and Guidelines While this guide offers a helpful overview, you should ensure that you’re familiar with the relevant governing bodies and regulations, and seek professional legal advice when necessary. Some of the key resources include:
- The Health and Safety Executive (HSE)
- The Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992, covering roller shutter doors
- The Door & Hardware Federation (DHF), which works with compliance bodies such as the HSE and Trading Standards, as well as fire safety organisations
Do You Legally Need to Service Roller Shutter Doors? As a business owner or manager, it’s your duty to maintain roller shutter doors to a safe standard to prevent injury or damage. Failure to do so could lead to a civil claim if someone is harmed due to negligence.
If you’re an employer, self-employed, a landlord, maintenance contractor, managing agent, or facilities manager, you could face criminal prosecution under health and safety law if the doors on your premises are unsafe.
Regular servicing and maintenance of roller doors or high-speed doors is essential to meet these legal requirements.
Routine Maintenance and Inspections As highlighted on our Servicing & Repairs page, regular maintenance is a cost-effective way to prevent problems, saving time and money, and prolonging the lifespan of your doors. But how often should they be serviced?
The frequency of servicing depends on how often the doors are used. Here’s a recommended schedule:
| Frequency of use | Recommended service schedule |
|---|---|
| 1 to 2 operations per day | Annually |
| Up to 15 operations per day | Every 6 months |
| Up to 30 operations per day | Every 4 months |
| Up to 45 operations per day | Every 3 months |
| Over 45 operations per day | Every 2 months |
It’s important to follow this schedule to avoid excessive wear on components. Irregular servicing can lead to system failure or damage. Additionally, a qualified engineer can identify potential issues that might not be visible to an untrained eye, ensuring your doors remain safe and comply with the law.
Practical Considerations If your business uses roller doors, the following considerations are essential to ensure compliance with legal obligations. A professional roller door service provider, such as Cornwall Garage Door Centre, can be a key part of your safety strategy.
Risk Assessments
- Keep detailed records of each maintenance and inspection session.
- Establish how frequently risk assessments should be conducted for your roller doors.
- Identify specific hazards that need to be addressed during these assessments.
- Determine who will conduct these assessments and what tools or checklists they will need.
Employee Training
- Ensure employees are trained on the safe operation and emergency procedures for roller doors.
- Schedule refresher training at appropriate intervals.
Signage
- Identify where safety signs or warnings should be placed around the doors.
Reporting and Record Keeping
- Understand which incidents involving the doors need to be reported to authorities.
- Keep records of the installation, maintenance, repairs, and inspections of your doors, and know how long these should be retained.
Modifications, Alterations, and Compliance
- If any modifications or alterations are made to your roller doors, ensure they still meet safety standards and comply with relevant regulations.
Working closely with a health and safety expert familiar with industrial doors is always recommended. Cornwall Garage Door Centre can provide expert advice on all aspects of roller door maintenance and safety, helping you meet your legal obligations.
For more information on our roller door maintenance plans, get in touch with us today.
