Elevator Inspection Checklist

Your building’s elevator fails at 9 AM on a Monday. The service technician arrives five hours later and spends two minutes identifying the fault: a worn contactor in the control panel that any quarterly maintenance visit would have caught and replaced for under ₹800. Instead, the emergency call-out, parts rush, and overtime labor run ₹6,500—plus a full day of resident complaints.

This scenario plays out thousands of times across Indian residential societies and commercial buildings every year. A 2023 industry analysis found that over 70% of elevator breakdowns that require emergency intervention trace back to components that routine inspections routinely flag weeks or months in advance. The fault isn’t the elevator—it’s the absence of a structured, zone-by-zone checklist that gives maintenance teams and building managers a consistent process to follow.

This guide delivers a complete elevator inspection checklist organized by zone: inside the car, at landings, on top of the car, in the machine room, in the pit, and across functional safety tests. You’ll also get a simple owner-level daily check that takes under three minutes and catches developing faults before they strand passengers.

Inspection basics and regulations

Indian lift safety is governed by state-level Lift Acts and rules, the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS IS:14665 series), and local municipal inspection requirements. Most states mandate annual inspections by a licensed government inspector, separate from the preventive maintenance visits your AMC contractor performs.

The distinction matters. A statutory inspection verifies legal compliance and generates the certificate needed to operate the lift. A preventive maintenance visit covers mechanical and electrical upkeep between inspections. Building managers often conflate the two, then discover their maintenance visits weren’t covering inspection-readiness items.

Inside the car

Start every inspection cycle here. The cabin gives the quickest read on overall system health.

• Doors: Open and close fully without hesitation; auto-reopen on obstruction; no rubbing or misalignment at door edges
• Car lighting: All fixtures working; emergency lighting activates within 2 seconds of simulated power failure
• Emergency communication: Phone or intercom connects to a monitored point; test at least monthly
• Alarm bell: Audible from outside the car with doors closed​
• Ventilation: Fan operating; no stale or smoky air buildup after 2-3 trips​
• Indicators and buttons: All floor buttons register; position display matches actual floor; no sticky or unresponsive controls
• Car interior condition: Walls, ceiling, and floor free from damage, moisture, or loose fixtures​

At landings and outside the car

Landing door problems cause the highest share of passenger incidents in India—between 40-50% of all elevator-related injuries involve door mechanisms.

• Landing doors close completely with no gap exceeding 6mm at meeting edges​
• Door panels move smoothly with no dragging on sills or jambs
• Hall buttons and floor indicators respond correctly at every floor​
• Fireman’s switch (where required) is accessible, labeled, and functional​
• Landing approach areas stay clear of stored items, debris, or obstruction

On top of the car and in the hoistway

This zone gets the least attention from building managers and carries the highest risk of missed faults.

• Car-top stop switch functions and is clearly labeled
• Guide rails show no visible damage, rust, or inadequate lubrication
• Traveling cables move freely without kinking, fraying, or contact with hoistway walls
• Hoistway is free from water ingress, debris accumulation, and visible structural damage
• Door operators and mechanical door locks visibly intact and engaging correctly​

Machine room and control panel

The contrarian insight here: building managers almost never enter the machine room between service visits. Yet this is where developing faults give the clearest early warning signs—unusual heat from a struggling motor, a burnt smell from ageing contactors, or condensation near electrical panels that signals inadequate ventilation.

What to check

• Access door locked, ventilation working, lighting functional, room clean and free from stored items
• Main disconnect and earth connections tight and labeled
• Control panel: no tripped breakers, burnt smell, discolored wiring, or failed indicator LEDs
• Motor, brake, and drive system: listen for abnormal noise; check for oil seepage or overheating
• Backup power or ARD system: battery charge indicator healthy; test emergency lowering function quarterly

Pit area and safety devices

Pit conditions deteriorate silently. Water accumulation is the single most common pit fault in Indian buildings—monsoon ingress, plumbing leaks, and inadequate sealing create damp pits that corrode buffers, guide rails, and electrical components over months.

• Pit dry, clean, and free from oil pooling or standing water
• Pit lighting working; pit stop switch accessible and labeled
• Buffers visually intact with no deformation, cracking, or oil loss
• Governor rope and tension weight moving freely without obstruction
• Safety gear linkages visible and not corroded​

Functional and safety tests

These tests go beyond visual inspection and confirm that safety systems actually activate when needed.

Run these tests at every maintenance visit, not just statutory inspections:

1. Door safety sensor test: Hold an object in the door path; confirm auto-reversal within 150ms
2. Emergency stop test: Activate stop switch; confirm car halts immediately and alarm activates​
3. Emergency communication test: Simulate power failure; confirm intercom and alarm remain active on battery​
4. Floor leveling check: Measure car floor vs landing floor at each stop; deviation beyond 10mm needs adjustment
5. Overload device test: Load car to rated capacity + 10%; confirm system refuses to travel
6. Hydraulic drift test (hydraulic lifts only): Park loaded car at top floor; check for downward drift after 10 minutes; any measurable drift signals valve wear

Documentation, frequency, and owner checklist

The gap between compliant and truly well-maintained elevators usually comes down to logbook discipline, not technician skill.

Maintenance frequency by task:

• Daily (building staff): Check cabin lighting, door operation, floor leveling, and unusual noise or vibration
• Monthly (AMC contractor): Full interior check, door adjustment, landing door inspection, lubrication, pit and hoistway visual
• Quarterly (AMC contractor): All monthly items plus functional safety tests, machine room inspection, ARD test, and logbook review
• Annual (licensed inspector): Full statutory inspection with test certificates, load test, safety device verification, and compliance documentation

Building managers should receive written reports after every AMC visit, not just verbal updates. Unresolved defects need tracking with target closure dates. Logbooks showing consistent signed entries across all visits carry significant weight during statutory inspections—and protect buildings legally if incidents occur.

FAQs

How often must elevators be inspected by a government inspector in India?
Most states require annual statutory inspections by a licensed inspector from the state electrical inspectorate or equivalent authority. Some states mandate half-yearly inspections for lifts in hospitals, schools, and high-occupancy buildings. Non-compliance risks operating certificate cancellation and, in some states, criminal liability for building management.

What documents should building managers keep for elevator compliance?
Maintain the original installation certificate, all annual inspection certificates and test reports, AMC contractor service records with technician signatures, logbooks for each visit, and defect-closure records. Most inspectors review at least 3 years of documentation during statutory visits.

Can building staff perform any inspection items themselves?
Yes. Daily visual checks—cabin lighting, door operation, floor leveling, and alert for unusual noise—fall within building staff capability and take under 3 minutes per trip. These checks don’t replace AMC visits but catch faults between service intervals before they escalate.

What causes the most elevator breakdowns in Indian buildings?
Door malfunctions account for 40-50% of breakdowns, followed by control system faults (15-20%) and leveling issues (10-15%). Most of these trace to deferred maintenance: skipped adjustments, dirty sensors, and worn door rollers that regular inspections would flag early.

Conclusion

A zone-by-zone inspection checklist—covering the car, landings, hoistway, machine room, and pit—combined with consistent documentation and functional safety tests, prevents the majority of elevator breakdowns that interrupt daily use and generate expensive emergency repairs.

If your building’s elevator doesn’t currently have a documented inspection process, or your AMC visits don’t generate written reports, that’s the single most important gap to close first.

Express Elevators runs structured, zone-by-zone inspection programs for residential societies, commercial buildings, hospitals, and institutions across India. Every maintenance visit generates a written report covering all checklist items, outstanding defects, and recommended actions—giving building managers and RWAs the documentation needed for statutory compliance and informed decision-making.

Our preventive maintenance model targets the faults that cause the most breakdowns: door systems, control panels, and safety devices. We flag developing issues before they become failures and track closure on every reported defect.

If your current AMC doesn’t provide written inspection reports or you’re approaching your annual statutory inspection, contact us for a review. Share your building details and elevator type, and we’ll map out a compliance-ready inspection schedule for your specific system.