Correct as at 19th April 2024. It may be superseded at any time.

Extract taken from: Vehicle Inspection Portal > VIRMs > In-service certification (WoF and CoF) > Forklifts > Introduction

1 Introduction

Inspection and certification of forklifts: Warrant of fitness requirements

This section specifies the requirements that are applicable to the inspection and certification of forklifts for the purpose of issuing a warrant of fitness (WoF).

A forklift is defined as a motor vehicle (not fitted with self-laying tracks) designed principally for lifting, carrying and stacking goods by means of one or more tines, platens or clamps.

General requirements

1. A forklift that is operated on the road, ie that is registered, requires a WoF. Therefore, the vehicle inspector may inspect a forklift only if it has a registration plate attached to it.

Note: A forklift used solely on a road that is a private road is not required to be registered (so no registration plate attached), and therefore a WoF cannot and must not be issued. Private road means a road, place or arcade laid out or formed on private land by the owner of that land. A forklift operated on a private road must still be safe and, if operated at night, must be fitted with headlamps or work lamps and rear position lamps.

2. Forklifts are required to comply with WoF requirements only as far as is practicable for their design and type. The requirements in this section are what the NZTA considers to be practicable in relation to the inspection and certification of forklifts.

3. Modifications that affect a safety requirement do not require low volume vehicle (LVV) or heavy vehicle specialist (HVS) certification unless specified otherwise. However, if the vehicle inspector has concerns about the modification, they must obtain additional information from a relevant person before passing the vehicle for WoF.

4. A forklift is not required to have a permanent vehicle identifier. If the forklift has a permanent vehicle identifier, such as the manufacturer’s serial number, it must be recorded on the checksheet and on the NZTA computer system.

5. This section applies to both light and heavy forklifts. Heavy forklifts, that is those with a gross vehicle mass (GVM) greater than 3500kg, may be inspected and certified for a WoF only if the inspecting organisation and vehicle inspector have current ‘Heavy vehicle, exempt from CoF’ authorisation.

6. For the purpose of this section, the GVM can generally be determined by adding the unladen weight of the forklift (including fuel in the fuel system and any equipment and accessories necessary to operate the forklift), the crew and the forklift’s lifting capacity.

Page amended 1 November 2012 (see amendment details).