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Forklift inspection checklist
OSHA requires every forklift to be examined before it is placed in service, at least daily, and after each shift on trucks that run around the clock. Pick an electric or an internal combustion truck, mark each item pass, fail or N/A, and the checklist shows at once whether the truck can be used or must be tagged out. Download the day’s check as a one-page PDF, a one-week sheet for the clipboard, or Excel, or print the blank forms. Morsa asks each operator for the check from their phone and tells maintenance when a truck fails.
Updated November 3, 2026
What OSHA requires
The daily check comes from 29 CFR 1910.178(q)(7): “Industrial trucks shall be examined before being placed in service, and shall not be placed in service if the examination shows any condition adversely affecting the safety of the vehicle. Such examination shall be made at least daily. Where industrial trucks are used on a round-the-clock basis, they shall be examined after each shift. Defects when found shall be immediately reported and corrected.”
Two more lines decide what happens when a check fails. 1910.178(p)(1): “If at any time a powered industrial truck is found to be in need of repair, defective, or in any way unsafe, the truck shall be taken out of service until it has been restored to safe operating condition.” And (q)(1): “Any power-operated industrial truck not in safe operating condition shall be removed from service. All repairs shall be made by authorized personnel.”
What the daily forklift checklist covers
The presets follow OSHA’s sample daily checklists for electric and internal combustion trucks, developed with the Industrial Truck Association, and the pre-operation checks in OSHA’s forklift eTool. Visual checks are done with the key off; operational checks with the truck running.
| Check | Electric | LP gas, gasoline, diesel |
|---|---|---|
| Leaks | Hydraulic oil, battery | Fuel, hydraulic oil, engine oil, coolant |
| Tires, forks, load backrest | Yes | Yes |
| Hoses, mast chains, cables, stops | Yes | Yes |
| Overhead guard, finger guards, decals | Yes | Yes |
| Capacity plate or nameplate matches the truck | Yes | Yes |
| Battery level and charge | Yes, plus cables, connectors and restraint | Yes |
| Engine oil, coolant, belts, air cleaner | No | Yes |
| Propane tank, relief valve, hoses, restraint | No | LP gas only |
| Fuel sedimentor | No | Diesel only |
| Seat belt or fall protection | Yes | Seat belt |
| Brakes, steering, drive, tilt, hoist, attachments | Yes | Yes |
| Horn, lights, back-up alarm, gauges or monitors | Yes, plus battery discharge indicator | Yes, plus cab heater and wipers |
Mark an item N/A when the truck does not have it, such as an attachment or a cab. Add your own checks, like a blue pedestrian light, under “Your own checks”.
How to do a forklift pre-shift inspection
Park the truck on a level surface, forks lowered, parking brake on, key off.
Walk around it for leaks, tire damage, bent or cracked forks, loose chains, missing guards or plates.
Check the fluids and the power source: battery level and cables on an electric truck; oil, coolant and the propane tank or fuel on an engine truck. Wear a face shield and gloves around the battery or the propane tank.
Sit down, belt up and start it. Test the horn, lights, alarm, brakes, steering, drive, tilt, hoist and any attachment, with no load.
Mark each item pass, fail or N/A, with the hour meter reading.
If anything fails, do not use the truck. Tag it out of service, take the key and report it to your supervisor or maintenance.
File the checklist with the truck’s records and keep the week sheet on the truck.
When a forklift fails the check
One failed item is enough to keep the truck off the floor. The checklist above says so in plain words as soon as an item is marked Fail: do not operate, tag the truck out and report it. Note what is wrong, who it was reported to and the out-of-service tag number, so maintenance knows what to fix and the next shift knows why the truck is parked. Only authorized people repair it, and it goes back in service once the repair is signed off.
Daily checklist or weekly sheet
Use the daily checklist when each operator signs their own check. Use the one-week sheet when the same truck is checked every day: every item down the side, a column for each day, and rows for the hour meter, the shift and the operator’s initials. Both come filled with the truck’s details, or blank.
Forklift inspection example
The example comes from a sample machine shop. Luis, on second shift, checks FL-03, an electric sit-down truck at 6,412.5 hours. Every item passes except the horn, which does not sound, so the checklist says do not operate. He reports it to Priya, the maintenance lead, and the truck gets out-of-service tag OOS-0219. Pick Internal combustion to see the LP gas truck example. Press “Start from this example” to load it and change it into your own.
Paper, app or Morsa
Paper checklists are free and work, until a stack of them sits in a drawer nobody reads, and a failed horn on Tuesday is still failed on Friday. Inspection apps fix the filing but often need a login and a device for every operator, and they still rely on someone to tell maintenance.
An AI system like Morsa can collect the check. At the start of each shift Morsa asks each operator for the daily check from their phone, in WhatsApp, Teams or a text, in their own language. It files the result against the truck and keeps the week’s record. When a truck fails, it tells maintenance at once with the defect and the hour meter, opens the work order and reminds the supervisor until the truck is repaired. Trucks with no check logged are listed for the shift lead each morning.
Mistakes that make forklift checks worthless
Pencil-whipping. Ticking every box without looking. Spot-check a truck against its sheet now and then.
Using the truck anyway. A failed check with the truck still in use is worse than no check: it proves you knew.
No hour meter reading. It is how maintenance schedules service.
One checklist for every truck type. An electric truck has no engine oil; a propane truck has a tank to check.
Defects not reported. OSHA wants them “immediately reported and corrected”; the checklist only works if someone acts on it.
No one checks the checks. Nobody reads a stack of sheets; a supervisor should see each day which trucks failed and which were never checked.
Frequently asked questions
Does OSHA require a daily forklift inspection?
Yes. 29 CFR 1910.178(q)(7) says industrial trucks “shall be examined before being placed in service” and that “such examination shall be made at least daily.” Trucks used around the clock are examined after each shift.
Does the daily check have to be written down?
The text of 1910.178(q)(7) requires the examination and that defects are reported and corrected; it does not itself say the check must be on paper. Most plants keep a written or digital checklist anyway, because it is the only way to show an inspector, an insurer or a court that the check was done and what was found.
What happens if an item fails?
The truck is not used. 1910.178(p)(1) says a truck found “in need of repair, defective, or in any way unsafe” is “taken out of service until it has been restored to safe operating condition,” and (q)(1) says “all repairs shall be made by authorized personnel.” Tag it out, take the key, report it and write the defect on the checklist.
Who does the forklift inspection?
The operator who will drive the truck that shift, before using it. Operators must be trained and evaluated under 1910.178(l), and OSHA’s training topics include the inspection and maintenance the operator is required to do.
Does a forklift need a check every shift?
At least once a day before it is used. Where trucks run around the clock, 1910.178(q)(7) says they “shall be examined after each shift,” so a truck shared by three shifts gets three checks a day. The week sheet has a row for the shift so each check is on record.
What is the difference between the electric and the propane checklist?
Both cover tires, forks, mast chains, guards, plates, brakes, steering, controls, horn and lights. Electric trucks add the battery, its cables and connectors, the battery restraint and the discharge indicator. Internal combustion trucks add engine oil, coolant, belts, the air cleaner and gauges, and on LP gas trucks the propane tank, relief valve, hoses and tank restraint. Diesel adds the fuel sedimentor.
Can I use this checklist for a pallet jack or order picker?
For an electric pallet jack, stacker or order picker, start from the electric preset, mark items the truck does not have as N/A, and add your own checks, such as the fall protection on a man-up order picker. Check the manufacturer’s manual for items specific to the truck.
Related tools
WHERE MORSA FITS
Know every truck was checked before the shift starts.
Morsa asks each operator for the daily check from their phone, files the result and tells maintenance about any truck that fails. It works in WhatsApp, Teams, text or whatever your plant already runs on.
