What to do if your lift breaks down
A home lift is at the heart of any property as it moves people and sometimes goods, and its worth depends on its reliability and performance. A lift breakdown is troublesome for the user, and it can hugely affect people who are less mobile and cannot use the stairs.
In this guide, we provide step-by-step guidance on what to do if a home lift stops working and what you can do to help prevent a lift from breaking down.
A lift breakdown procedure: a step-by-step guide
Whilst the average number of passenger lift breakdowns is very small, like all mechanical items and equipment, it can occasionally malfunction. This could, in turn, mean a user gets stuck in their homelift or that it can’t be called if the fault occurs when you are not riding it. These are the steps you should follow.
Use the in-car communication
In an emergency situation or if a lift breaks down whilst you are on it, there are in-car communications that allow passengers to call a third party.
A connection to a telephone line will be required, but in an emergency, passengers can speak to emergency services or family and friends if they need help.
This is the first thing you should do if you need assistance.
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Call a lift engineer
In the event of a lift breakdown, one of the first things you should do is to notify a lift engineer from Companion Homelifts.
If you give an engineer notice about a lift breakdown and explain that the user has limited mobility, the engineer will arrive quickly. The expert engineers at Handicare will be on hand in a timely manner and will be able to help fix the issue.
Use the other safety features in the lift
Most home lift models are usually installed with certain safety features, such as emergency lighting, so you aren’t kept in the dark should it break down. These will often turn on in the event of a power failure.
Depending on the model you have, there might be other buttons on the control panel that you can use during a lift breakdown. Not only will it have in-car communication, but there will also be an alarm button, emergency stop button, floor buttons and more.
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Stay calm
One of the most important steps you need to follow if your lift has broken down and you are trapped is to stay calm. Panicking does not help anyone, and once you have pressed the alarm in your homelift, you know someone is on their way.
You could try calm breathing techniques if you find it helps to stay calm, or you could stay on the phone with your family and friends if you find talking to them helpful.
What are the things you should do to avoid a lift breaking down
There are some tips you can follow that will help prevent lift breakdowns.
Lift maintenance and servicing
One of the most important things you need to do is to get your lift serviced regularly. As part of a service, an expert engineer will check all the equipment is working correctly.
By getting your home lift serviced regularly, you will improve its lifespan, maximise the reliability of your home lift, and reduce the risk of lift breakdowns.
At Companion Homelifts, we recommend your homelift undergoes an annual service. Our 12-month warranty includes one free service to ensure it operates efficiently.
In the unlikely event of a breakdown, our support team is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, at 0800 144 5257.
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Make sure the lift is being used correctly
When you buy a new home lift and install it, you will be informed about all the safety features that it boasts. You will also be given guidance on how all the features work and weight restrictions.
If you are using a home lift to take something upstairs, you should be aware of the weight restrictions advised for your particular model because if this is exceeded, you are more likely to cause it to break down.
Regular functional and visual checks
As a user of a homelift, you might notice something doesn’t seem to work as it used to.
This could be something as simple as a light in the homelift cab not working, your homelift making a strange noise, or the doors not shutting properly.
If that is the case, you should contact one of our expert engineers, and they can come and check all the parts of your homelift and conduct any repairs if it is necessary. You should not try to do this yourself; it should be left to one of the expert engineers.
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As this guide highlights, there are plenty of steps you can follow if you suffer a lift breakdown. It is also vital that lifts for homes are serviced regularly to ensure your home remains accessible. You can contact Companion Homelifts here to find out more about the different home lift products that are available.
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