Mechanical repair
Health and safety priorities for mechanical MVR
Most accidents in mechanical repair involve trips and falls or poor methods of lifting and handling often resulting in serious injury. Accidents involving vehicles are frequent and cause serious injuries and deaths every year. Work on petrol tanks in particular causes serious burns, hundreds of fires and some deaths each year.
Particular issues for mechanical repair
Fire and explosion
Fires and explosions are major causes of deaths and property damage in MVR. Usually, they involve the mishandling of petrol, e.g. when draining fuel tanks and lines, but incidents have also occurred during ‘hot work’ repairs on vehicle diesel tanks and waste-oil storage tanks.
Resources
Work involving motor vehicle fuel - diesel, petrol and LPG SR16
Hot work on painted panels eg welding, cutting, grinding MR6
Safe Working with Flammable Substances INDG 227
Plant and Equipment
Lifting plant and equipment, including bottle/trolley jacks, axle stands
- use correct pins in axle stands
- correctly position jacks and axle stands, and use chocks
- never work beneath a vehicle supported only by a jack or jacks. It should be supplemented with appropriate stands, and the wheels of the vehicle still in contact with the ground should be chocked
- ensure jacks and axle stands are regularly serviced, maintained, and where necessary, thoroughly examined
What is thorough examination?
- A thorough examination is a systematic and detailed examination of the lifting equipment by a competent person to detect any defects that are, or might become, dangerous.
How often must lifting equipment and accessories be thoroughly examined?
- Before using it for the first time – unless the equipment has an EC Declaration of Conformity less than one year old. If it was assembled on site, it must be examined by a competent person to establish the assembly was correct and safe, e.g. Two-Post Vehicle Lift.
- If people work beneath a vehicle raised on a vehicle lift, a risk assessment of that work should conclude that six months between thorough examinations is appropriate and is the period recommended by BS 7980:2003.
- Garage equipment such as trolley and bottle jacks should be regarded as lifting equipment, with thorough examination every 12 months.
Please click here for guidance document on "Application of the provision and use of work equipment regulations 1998 and the lifting operations and lifting equipment regulations 1998 to motor vehicle repair"
Props to support tractor units and trailers on commercial vehicles
- use props as recommended by the manufacturer
Grinding wheels, pedestal drills, compressors and other machinery
- guards and other safety devices must be maintained in good condition and properly maintained
Resources
Dust from abrasive wheels SR21
Working safely under motor vehicles being repaired INDG 434
Welding fumes
Fume from welding, flame cutting and other ‘hot work’ varies greatly and may cause dryness of the throat, tickling, coughing, tightness of the chest and difficulty in breathing. Long- term changes in the lung are possible. Harmful fumes and gases during welding in MVR include those from primer and paint layers, other surface coatings such as underseal, and from lead in car bodies.
Use local exhaust ventilation e.g. mobile extraction unit with flexible exhaust hood and trunking, wherever possible and always in confined spaces.
Resources
Hot work on painted panels e.g. welding, cutting, grinding MR6
COSHH (Control of substances hazardous to health) essentials
This series of information sheets will help motor vehicle repair practitioners to comply with their duties under the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2003 (as amended) to control exposure to hazardous substances and protect workers' health.The sheets describe good practice when carrying out a range of common MVR tasks.
MVR COSHH Guidance Sheets
Tyre removal, replacement and inflation/deflation
Tyre removal, replacement and inflation should only be tackled by competent staff. The main hazards which can arise include:
- manual handling injuries, which account for nearly a half of all tyre-related incidents reported;
- tool-related injuries (which make up a quarter of incidents), particularly from hand tools such as tyre levers; and
- compressed-air accidents e.g. from a ruptured or burst tyre or violent separation of the component parts of the wheel. These accidents tend to result in serious injuries, including fatalities.
Resources
Safety during tyre inflation in motor vehicle repair INDG 433
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