The ALI lift inspection requirements exist because automotive lifts hold vehicles weighing thousands of pounds above technicians’ heads. When a lift fails, people die. The Automotive Lift Institute (ALI) developed the ANSI/ALI ALOIM standard — the American National Standard for Automotive Lifts: Safety Requirements for Operation, Inspection, and Maintenance — to establish exactly what is required to keep lifts safe throughout their service life.
We inspect lifts according to these standards every day. This article explains what the ALI lift inspection requirements actually say, who they apply to, who qualifies to perform inspections, and what happens when shops ignore them.
What Is ANSI/ALI ALOIM?
ANSI/ALI ALOIM is a consensus standard published by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and developed by the Automotive Lift Institute (ALI). The full title is “American National Standard for Automotive Lifts — Safety Requirements for Operation, Inspection, and Maintenance.”
The standard covers three areas:
Operation. How lifts should be used day to day. This includes operator training, load capacity awareness, proper vehicle positioning, and prohibited practices (standing under a lift supported only by hydraulic pressure without locks engaged, for example).
Inspection. What must be inspected, how often, and by whom. This is the core of the ALI lift inspection requirements — the annual professional inspection that every lift should receive.
Maintenance. What ongoing maintenance is required to keep lifts operating safely. Lubrication schedules, fluid changes, cable replacement intervals, and corrective action for identified deficiencies.
ALOIM is not law in the same way a building code is law. It is an industry consensus standard — meaning it represents the agreed-upon best practice of lift manufacturers, safety professionals, and industry experts. However, its legal significance is substantial, as we will explain.
What the ALI Lift Inspection Requirements Mandate
Annual Inspection by a Qualified Inspector
The centerpiece of the ALI lift inspection requirements is the annual professional inspection. Every automotive lift must be inspected at least once per year by a qualified lift inspector. The inspection must cover every safety-critical component: structural members, safety locks, cables, hydraulic systems, electrical systems, controls, and operational function.
This is not a suggestion. It is the minimum frequency the standard requires. Lifts in high-use environments, harsh conditions, or advanced age may need more frequent inspection.
Daily Pre-Use Checks by Operators
ALOIM requires operators — the technicians who use the lift every day — to perform visual checks before each use. These daily checks are not the same as a professional inspection. They are quick, visual-only assessments looking for obvious problems:
- Unusual noises during operation
- Visible hydraulic leaks
- Damaged or missing components
- Obstructions in the lift path
- Proper lock engagement
- Damaged lift pads or adapters
If an operator identifies any problem during a daily check, the lift should be taken out of service until a qualified person evaluates and addresses the issue.
Ongoing Maintenance
The ALI lift inspection requirements include maintenance obligations. Lifts must receive regular maintenance according to the manufacturer’s recommendations. This includes hydraulic fluid changes, cable replacement at specified intervals or when wear is identified, lubrication of moving components, and timely replacement of worn parts.
Maintenance is not optional. Deferring maintenance between annual inspections does not comply with the standard.
Documentation
ALOIM requires documentation of inspections, maintenance, and any corrective actions taken. Written records should include the date of each inspection, the name and qualifications of the inspector, findings for each component, any deficiencies identified, corrective actions recommended, and corrective actions completed.
Documentation serves two purposes: it tracks the lift’s condition over time, and it provides evidence of due diligence if a safety incident occurs.
Who Qualifies as an Inspector?
The ALI lift inspection requirements define a “qualified automotive lift inspector” as a person who, by possession of a recognized degree, certificate, professional standing, or skill, and who, by knowledge, training, and experience, has demonstrated the ability to deal with problems relating to automotive lift inspection.
In practical terms, this means:
ALI Certified Lift Inspector. ALI operates a Lift Inspector Certification Program. Inspectors who pass the program’s written examination and meet its experience requirements receive ALI certification. An ALI Certified Lift Inspector is the gold standard — a person independently verified to have the knowledge and competence to inspect automotive lifts.
Other qualified inspectors. The standard does not exclusively require ALI certification. A technician with extensive training, knowledge, and experience in automotive lift inspection can meet the “qualified” definition. However, the burden of demonstrating qualification falls on the inspector and the shop. An ALI Certified Lift Inspector carries recognized third-party validation of their qualifications. A self-declared inspector does not.
Who does NOT qualify. A general automotive technician, a shop owner with no lift-specific training, or a maintenance worker who “checks the lifts” is not a qualified inspector under the ALI lift inspection requirements. Using the lift every day does not qualify someone to inspect it. Operating knowledge and inspection knowledge are different disciplines.
We employ inspectors with deep training and direct experience across every lift type, brand, and vintage in the field.
The OSHA Connection
OSHA — the Occupational Safety and Health Administration — does not have a specific automotive lift standard. There is no “29 CFR 1910.xxx — Automotive Lifts” regulation. However, OSHA’s General Duty Clause (Section 5(a)(1) of the OSH Act) requires every employer to furnish a workplace “free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm.”
An uninspected automotive lift is a recognized hazard. OSHA has cited employers under the General Duty Clause for operating lifts without documented inspection and maintenance programs. In these citations, OSHA references ANSI/ALI ALOIM as the applicable industry standard — the benchmark for what constitutes reasonable care.
This means the ALI lift inspection requirements, while technically voluntary, become the de facto legal standard when OSHA investigates a lift-related incident. A shop that follows ALOIM demonstrates compliance with the General Duty Clause. A shop that ignores ALOIM has no defense.
OSHA citations carry financial penalties. More importantly, a lift failure that injures or kills a technician in a shop with no inspection records exposes the shop owner to both OSHA penalties and civil liability.
Insurance Implications
Commercial insurance carriers for automotive repair facilities increasingly require documented annual lift inspections as a condition of coverage or as a factor in premium calculation.
Policy requirements. Some policies explicitly require annual lift inspection by a qualified inspector. Failure to maintain current inspections may void coverage for lift-related incidents. If a technician is injured by a lift failure and the shop cannot produce current inspection documentation, the insurance carrier may deny the claim.
Premium impact. Even when inspections are not explicitly required by the policy, documented inspection and maintenance programs may reduce premiums. Insurance underwriters evaluate risk — a shop with documented ALI lift inspection requirements compliance presents lower risk than one with no records.
Liability exposure. In a civil lawsuit following a lift-related injury, the plaintiff’s attorney will ask one question immediately: “Were the lifts inspected?” If the answer is no, or if the inspection was performed by an unqualified person, the shop’s liability exposure increases dramatically. ANSI/ALI ALOIM is the standard that courts reference to determine whether the shop exercised reasonable care.
What ALOIM Does NOT Require
Understanding the limits of the standard is as important as understanding its requirements.
ALOIM does not require lift replacement at a specific age. There is no “expiration date” on an automotive lift. A well-maintained lift that passes annual inspection can remain in service regardless of age. Conversely, a poorly maintained three-year-old lift can fail inspection. Age is a factor in inspection — older lifts need closer attention to corrosion, fatigue, and component wear — but age alone does not mandate replacement.
ALOIM does not specify who must pay for inspection. The standard establishes what must be done, not who pays for it. Inspection is a business operating cost — like fire extinguisher servicing or electrical panel maintenance.
ALOIM does not require a specific inspection format. The standard defines what must be inspected and the qualifications of the inspector, but it does not mandate a specific form or checklist. However, thorough documentation is expected, and most qualified inspectors use comprehensive checklists to ensure nothing is missed.
How We Apply the ALI Lift Inspection Requirements
Our inspection process follows ALOIM in full. Every inspection covers structural integrity, mechanical safety systems (locks, cables, chains), hydraulic systems (pressure, drift, leaks), electrical systems (motor, controls, grounding), and complete operational testing. We document every finding, provide written reports with pass/fail determinations and repair recommendations, and maintain records for reference.
We inspect all lift types — two-post, four-post, scissor, in-ground, parallelogram, mobile column, and specialty lifts. We inspect all brands. We inspect lifts of every age, from newly installed to thirty-plus years in service.
When we find deficiencies, we provide clear repair recommendations with priority levels so shop owners can address critical issues immediately and plan for lower-priority maintenance. We can perform most repairs ourselves, and we re-inspect after repairs to verify the lift meets standards.
The Cost of Ignoring These Requirements
Shops that skip annual inspections are gambling. They are gambling that no cable will fray to the breaking point this year. They are gambling that no lock pawl will wear past engagement this year. They are gambling that no anchor will pull out of deteriorated concrete this year.
When that gamble fails, the consequences are severe: technician injury or death, OSHA investigation and citations, insurance claim denial, civil lawsuits, and business closure. The cost of an annual inspection is negligible compared to the cost of any one of those outcomes.
The ALI lift inspection requirements exist because the automotive lift industry learned these lessons through real incidents. The standards represent decades of accumulated knowledge about what fails, how it fails, and how to catch it before it fails.
Call 800-674-9302 or email info@autoliftserv.com to schedule an inspection that meets ALI standards. Browse lift equipment at store.autoliftserv.com.
Josiah Ragsdale
Founder, Automotive Lift Services
Josiah has been installing, repairing, and inspecting automotive lifts since he was 18 years old. He founded Automotive Lift Services in 2019 after years of seeing lifts installed wrong, never inspected, and putting technicians at risk. His team now services all 50 states from their Iowa headquarters. Read more
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