Engineering insurance inspection is where the insurer's engineer surveyor keeps people safe and the insurer's exposure honest. A crane that has not had its thorough examination, a pressure vessel outside its written scheme: these are not paperwork failures, they are the conditions that precede a serious loss. So the real question about plant and machinery inspection software is not which tool has the longest asset library. It is which tool gets the competent person's examination, and any dangerous defect, recorded accurately and promptly while they are still on site.
Guide · Insurance
Plant and machinery insurance inspection for the UK.
A practical guide to recording engineering insurance inspections on site, from LOLER thorough examination of lifting equipment to the written scheme of examination for pressure systems, using a WhatsApp workflow your surveyors already know.
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The point
Software does not carry the examination.
The competent person does. Software makes the examination easier to record on site, harder to forget a defect, and faster to turn into the report the duty holder relies on. A good tool means nobody writes up a lift or a pressure vessel from memory in the van at the depot gate.
Two regimes, one surveyor
What engineering insurance inspection covers.
LOLER 1998
Lifting equipment
Thorough examination of cranes, hoists, lifts, slings and accessories at the statutory intervals, with defects and their severity recorded at the point of observation.
PSSR 2000Pressure systems
Examination against the written scheme of examination for boilers, compressors, air receivers and steam plant, tied to the scheme and its due dates.
Other plantPUWER and local exhaust
Work equipment under PUWER and LEV testing where the insurer's engineer surveyor also inspects it, captured in the same structured record.
Statutory, not optional
The report is a legal record, not a formality.
A LOLER thorough examination and a PSSR examination are duties, and the report is the evidence the duty holder keeps. A defect that presents a danger to persons has to be reported promptly and can carry an enforcing authority notification. Record the finding, its severity and the timescale at the point of observation, not from memory later.
Run engineer surveys on WhatsApp
No app install. No training.
Surveyors use the phone they already have. Photograph the sling, the gauge, the corrosion. Dictate the defect. The report generates itself. Setup to first live workflow usually takes under a week.
The short version
- Engineering insurance inspection spans two main statutory regimes: LOLER 1998 for lifting equipment and PSSR 2000 for pressure systems.
- A LOLER thorough examination and a PSSR examination against the written scheme of examination are duties, carried out by a competent person.
- A defect that presents a danger to persons has to be reported promptly, and serious cases can require notifying the enforcing authority.
- The written scheme of examination sets what is examined, how and when, for a pressure system; the report ties back to it.
- Photo evidence and severity recorded at the point of observation beat anything written up later from memory.
- The software captures the examination and generates the report. It does not certify the plant. The competent person carries that.
The point
What engineering insurance inspection is for
Engineering insurance, sometimes called engineering inspection, is the arrangement whereby an insurer's engineer surveyor carries out statutory examinations of a client's plant, most commonly lifting equipment and pressure systems. It protects people, satisfies the client's legal duties, and gives the insurer a real view of the risk it carries. The examination is a professional act; the report is its record.
Software does not carry the examination. The competent person does. What software does is make the examination easier to record correctly on site, harder to forget a defect, and faster to turn into the report the duty holder relies on. The tool's only job is to make on-site capture the path of least resistance for a surveyor moving between assets on a busy site.
LOLER 1998
Thorough examination of lifting equipment
The Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 require lifting equipment to undergo a thorough examination by a competent person at defined intervals, typically six-monthly for equipment lifting people or an accessory, and twelve-monthly for other lifting equipment, or in accordance with an examination scheme. The examination covers cranes, hoists, passenger and goods lifts, slings, chains and other accessories, looking for wear, damage and defects that affect safe use.
Quickler lets the surveyor record each item, its examination result and any defect with a severity and a photo at the point of observation, then generates the report. It captures the competent person's findings; it does not make the equipment safe or replace the competent person's judgement. The examination intervals and requirements are set by regulation and guidance that can change, so check the current LOLER requirements and relevant guidance.
PSSR 2000
Pressure systems and the written scheme
The Pressure Systems Safety Regulations 2000 require certain pressure systems, boilers, steam plant, air receivers and compressors among them, to have a written scheme of examination drawn up by a competent person, and to be examined in accordance with it before the due date. The written scheme sets out what parts are examined, the nature of the examination and the maximum interval. The examination checks for corrosion, cracking, wastage and other deterioration that could lead to a dangerous release of stored energy.
Quickler ties the examination to the written scheme and its due dates, records the surveyor's findings and defects with photos, and generates the report. It does not draw up the written scheme or decide whether the system is safe to operate; those are the competent person's professional acts. Check the current PSSR requirements and supporting guidance before relying on any record.
Defects and duties
Reporting a danger to persons
The point that makes engineering inspection different from a routine audit is the duty around dangerous defects. Where an examination reveals a defect that is or could become a danger to persons, there are prompt reporting duties, and for the most serious cases the competent person must notify the relevant enforcing authority. This is not a matter the software decides; it is a professional and legal obligation on the competent person.
What software can do is make sure the finding, its severity and the required timescale are captured accurately at the point of observation, with a photo, and surfaced immediately rather than buried in a report filed days later. Quickler flags severity as the surveyor records it and puts it on the dashboard for the office. The decision to report, and to whom, remains the competent person's.
Pricing
Per report, not per seat
Most inspection apps charge per seat. For an engineering inspection or insurance firm that is the wrong shape: the coordinator who reads reports pays the same as the surveyor filing several a day, and every contract surveyor you add costs more.
Quickler charges per report, with unlimited users on every bundle. Bundles run from Quickler 50 at 50 pounds a month for 50 reports, up to Quickler 500 at 500 pounds a month for 500 reports. Add as many surveyors, contractors, coordinators and admins as you like; you pay for the reports you file, not the people who could file them. Pricing is approximate and shifts, so check the current pricing page before you commit.
Questions, answered
What is engineering insurance inspection?
It is the arrangement whereby an insurer's engineer surveyor, a competent person, carries out statutory examinations of a client's plant, most commonly lifting equipment under LOLER 1998 and pressure systems under PSSR 2000. It protects people, satisfies the client's legal duties and informs the insurer's view of the risk. The examination is professional; the report is its record. Quickler helps record the examination and generate the report.
What is a LOLER thorough examination?
The Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 require lifting equipment to have a thorough examination by a competent person at set intervals, commonly six-monthly for equipment lifting people and twelve-monthly for other lifting equipment, or under an examination scheme. It covers cranes, hoists, lifts, slings and accessories. Quickler records each item, result and defect with a photo; it does not make the equipment safe or replace the competent person's judgement. Check the current LOLER requirements.
What is a written scheme of examination under PSSR?
Under the Pressure Systems Safety Regulations 2000, certain pressure systems must have a written scheme of examination drawn up by a competent person, setting out what is examined, how and by when. The system must be examined in accordance with it before the due date. Quickler ties the examination to the scheme and records findings with photos. It does not draw up the scheme or decide the system is safe to operate. Check the current PSSR requirements.
Can I run engineering inspections over WhatsApp?
Yes. Quickler's workflow runs over the WhatsApp Business API. The surveyor receives each question in their existing WhatsApp chat, replies with text, a voice note or a photo, and the completed report generates automatically. No separate app or login is required, and Quickler manages the WhatsApp Business API account on the firm's behalf.