Forklift Daily Inspection Checklist: Electric, IC, and LP

September 10, 2026

OSHA requires the examination but does not publish the checklist. That is deliberate. 1910.178(q)(7) sets a performance requirement, which is to find any condition adversely affecting the safety of the vehicle, and leaves the specific items to the employer and the equipment manufacturer.

What follows is a working checklist for a sit-down counterbalance lift, split into the two halves the examination naturally falls into, plus the items that change depending on how the truck is powered. Use it as a starting point and adjust it against your operator's manual, and use the same method when you build a checklist for another piece of equipment.

Pre-start, key off

Under the truck. Puddles or drips. Hydraulic fluid, engine oil, coolant, fuel.
Fluid levels. Hydraulic, engine oil, coolant, brake fluid, as applicable.
Tires and wheels. Wear to the limit line. Chunking, cuts, and gouges. Press-on band separation. Lock ring seated and undamaged. Correct pressure on pneumatic tires. This is the most-skimmed item on any forklift checklist and the one most likely to strand a truck mid-shift.
Forks. Cracks, especially at the heel. Bend or set. Heel wear beyond ten percent of original thickness. Tips even with each other. Locking pins engaged.
Mast, chains, and rollers. Chain tension even between the two sides. Broken or stretched links. Rust or lack of lubrication. Check tension with a stick or a tool, never with a hand inside the mast.
Hydraulic hoses and fittings. Abrasion, bulges, weeping at the crimps.
Overhead guard and load backrest. Present, unbent, all fasteners in place.
Seat and seat belt. Belt latches and retracts, webbing not cut or frayed, mount secure.
Data plate and decals. Present and legible. The standard specifically requires that nameplates and markings be in place and readable.
Bodywork and counterweight. New damage since the last shift, which is often the first sign of an unreported strike.

Operational, key on

Gauges and warning lamps. All illuminate at startup and clear as expected.
Service brake. Firm pedal, stops the truck square, no pull to one side.
Parking brake. Holds the truck on a grade.
Steering. No excessive play, no binding, no unusual effort.
Horn. Sounds and is audible over ambient plant noise. A dead horn is a defect, not an inconvenience.
Lights and backup alarm. Headlights, tail lights, strobe, and reverse alarm all functioning.
Lift and lower. Full travel, smooth, no drift when held.
Tilt. Full range forward and back, no drift.
Attachments. Side shift, clamps, rotators. Full function, no leaks.
Noise and vibration. Anything new or unusual.

Electric trucks, additional

Battery state of charge and no discharge below the manufacturer's floor.
Battery restraint or hold-down in place.
Cables and connectors free of exposed conductor, melting, or corrosion.
Electrolyte level and no visible corrosion on terminals, on flooded lead-acid batteries.
Battery compartment cover secure.

Internal combustion, additional

No fuel leaks anywhere in the system. A truck must not be operated with a fuel system leak until it is corrected.
Exhaust system intact and not emitting sparks or flames. Sparks or flames mean immediate removal from service.
Air filter condition.
Belts and hoses.
Operating temperature normal. Any part running hot enough to create a hazard takes the truck out of service.

LP gas, additional

Tank securely mounted with the locating pin engaged in the alignment hole.
Tank pressure relief valve pointing upward as required.
Hose and connector free of cracks, abrasion, and leaks.
No odor of gas. Check connections with soapy water, never a flame.
Tank within its retest date.

What to do when something fails

The rule is not ambiguous. Under 1910.178(p)(1), a truck found to be in need of repair, defective, or in any way unsafe comes out of service and stays out until it has been restored to safe operating condition, by authorized personnel. Not by the operator with a wrench from the toolbox. Defects, when found, must be immediately reported and corrected.

Do you have to write it down?

Not under the standard. OSHA has confirmed in writing that documenting the powered industrial truck examination is left to the employer.

Keeping the record is still the right call, for reasons that have nothing to do with citations. A signed checklist is your defect history, your proof for an insurer, and the only way to notice that the same unit has failed on the same item four times this quarter. A paper checklist gives you the first two. A scan record with a timestamp and an operator name attached gives you all three, and can be sorted.