the ultimate guide to safe loading and unloading of vehicles

Working in logistics is not only demanding, but also dangerous. Workers have to be aware of several different hazards, especially if they’re going to be around transport or have to encounter deliveries of chemicals.

Recent 2025 HSE reports indicate that workplace incidents in the Transportation & Storage, and Manufacturing industries, including loading and unloading, led to 26 deaths in 2024/25 and an average of over 30,000 injuries annually in the UK between 2022 - 2025.

Below are some of the main hazards they face, before we look more closely at transport safety and chemical warehousing:

• machinery can hurt people;
• heavy loads can cause injuries or death;
• moving vehicles can lead to injuries or death;
• loads can shift during transit;
• drivers may drive away too early.

Reversing, if possible, should be avoided. Ideally, the operator should have a one-way system. Loading and unloading zones should have entrances and exits on either side if they can’t organise a one-way system.

The operator should also have well-positioned, highly visible barriers or bollards for any vehicle that has to reverse up to an edge or structure. These barriers should be able to stop a vehicle from moving at a low speed. White lines on the ground will help to guide the driver as they reverse the vehicle. According to the HSE, Reversing vehicles have caused 21 deaths per since 2020

Segregating Pedestrians

Before goods arrive, they should be analysed for the hazards they pose. The warehouse can then direct them to the appropriate part of the warehouse, attend to them and store them in line with local segregation policies. These policies should cover any ignition the goods could cause or the possible escalation of an incident.

Note that it might not always be the chemicals that trigger an incident. Elements such as discarded packaging, pallets or rubbish, set off by an ignited cigarette which an employee or other person in the warehouse area has smoked and then somewhat carelessly discarded, could also cause incidents.

One of the main causes of accidents in the workplace is reversing, so ideally, employers should remove the need to reverse wherever possible. If possible, they should implement one way systems, but if not, they should try to operate in a way that minimises reversing. Measures they should implement include:

• installation of barriers to stop vehicles entering pedestrian areas;
• planning and marking designated reversing areas clearly;
• increased visibility so that drivers can see pedestrians;
• use of portable radios or other similar communication systems;
• installation of equipment such as flashing beacons, reversing alarms and proximity-sensing devices to help the drivers to see pedestrians or warn them.

Loading and unloading vehicles carries a wide variety of risks, so employees should have information on the load and how to load it, secure it and unload it properly. This information should accompany the load and anyone who is involved in loading, transporting or unloading the items should have access to it.

Employers must ensure that vehicles have adequate, strong anchor points for load-securing equipment. This is required under UK workplace health and safety law, reinforced by HSE guidance. Employers must make sure vehicles are suitable for their purpose, which means they should be appropriate for any loads they’re carrying.

Employers should also ensure that all lifting equipment connectors or parts of a load that will be load-bearing are strong and stable enough to handle the stresses the lift itself will cause.

Maintenance is crucial as well. Employers should plan regular maintenance to guarantee their vehicles are mechanically sound and that devices such as flashing beacons are working properly. A competent person must perform thorough examinations of any lift trucks or trucks that have tail lifts and keep reports.

As part of planned preventative maintenance, drivers should perform daily safety checks and regular maintenance inspections based on mileage or time. They should receive a list of the daily safety checks to perform. This must be monitored.

• Are they performing the task in an area situated away from traffic, pedestrians and anyone not involved in loading or unloading the vehicle?
  
  
• Is the ground firm, flat and free of potholes?
  There should be no overhead cables or pipework, so that there’s no chance of fouling them or of electricity jumping through to earth through machinery, loads or people. The ground should be level, without any potholes or debris on it, to maintain the stability of the vehicle.
  
  
• Are parking brakes always being used on trailers and tractive units to stop unwanted movement?
  The vehicles should have effective parking brakes, and drivers shouldn’t be using the emergency brake as a parking brake when uncoupling the trailer and tractive units. They should never be using the emergency brake to secure a semi-trailer.
  
  
• Are the vehicles being braked and stabilised appropriately to avoid unsafe movements?
  Vehicles mustn’t be allowed to move while people are loading or unloading them, or are working around them. The vehicle should be as stationary and as level as possible. If the business has systems in place to stop vehicles moving, they should use them. Ideally, employees should know about the ways in which different types of vehicles move before they work in an area where vehicles operate.

• Has the need for people to go into the loading area been removed if possible and if there’s no safe access or use?
  
  
• Are they using appropriate lifting equipment?
  
  
• Are they loading or unloading the vehicle as evenly as possible to keep the trailer stable?
  Balancing the load is important to help the trailer move predictably and safely. Unbalanced loads can make the vehicle or trailer unstable or overload individual axles. Ideally, loads should rest as close as possible to the bulkhead.
  
  
• Are they checking that they’ve secured the load in line with the Department of Transport Code of Practice? Have they checked that they’ve not loaded the vehicle beyond its capacity before they set off on their journey?

Admittedly, there are a lot of checks to make, but it’s important to make them. A very serious accident could happen if not.

The Government offers an extremely useful guide on securing loads. We’ve picked out some important points for securing loads, and you can find more in this helpful video and on the Government website:

• The load should go as close to the bulkhead of the trailer as possible. If there are any gaps between the load and the bulkhead, you can place blocking elements in the trailer to help secure the load.
• Direct lashings are used for machinery and, to prevent the load from moving, in opposing pairs, whereas frictional lashings secure many different types of loads, are placed over the load itself and should be as vertical as possible. The type of lashing you choose will depend on the weight of the load, the friction between the load and the load bed, the number of tensioners you’re using, the lashing rating and the angle of the lashing to the load bed.
• Avoid working at height whenever possible.
• It may be more suitable to transport crushable loads in a stillage or box or secure them with rated tarpaulin, rather than secure them with lashes.
• Webbing straps can slacken quickly once the vehicle is in motion, which means that other methods of securing loads that consist of powdered goods may be preferable.
• A stacked load should be stable without lashing.
• You must be able to show that you’ve secured the load properly. A load plan (or load docket) provides everyone information about the load and how you’ve secured it.

Not all loads are the same, which means webbing straps or chains aren’t suitable for all loads. Choose a system that allows you to secure the load without creating other unnecessary risks such as manual handling and/or working at height.

Whichever system you choose, the system must secure the load to the vehicle chassis and stop the load from moving around. Learn about modern load securing systems from our Finnish distributor, NWE, who we partnered with for our Automated Trailer Loading installation for Bjelin, a wooden floor manufacturer.

Using Enough Load Restraint

Not securing a load properly can have grave consequences, the most obvious of these being death or serious injury. These consequences could happen to the driver, other road users or anyone involved in unloading the vehicle.

Common incidents as a result of unsecured loads include:

• items falling out of the vehicle during unloading, forcing someone to jump out of the way and fall;
• items falling out and hitting someone stood next to the vehicle when the curtain lifts;
• people slipping on the load bed because items have fallen over during the journey and the recipients have had to then unload them by hand;
• damage to goods, property or the infrastructure (the consumer then picks these up);
• damage to roads, leading to greater wear and tear on vehicles and increasing overheads for the operator.

Naturally, loading and unloading vehicles are very physical, which creates a major potential risk for people to injure themselves or for accidents to occur. 

The HSE reported an average of 40,000 non-fatal injuries a year between 2022 - 2025 in the Transportation & Storage sector

Here are some of the most common injuries people suffer when loading or unloading a vehicle:

• cuts and bruises;
• crush injuries from collisions with forklift trucks, falls from loading docks or falling items;
• sprains or strains from lifting cargo incorrectly or handling it the wrong way;
• spinal injuries from incorrect loading, unloading, crush injuries of falls;
• head injuries from falling cargo.

These are all common injuries, some of which occur as the result of horrific accidents, and both employers and employees need to be aware of the different safety hazards they face when a vehicle arrives for loading and unloading. Implementing and following suitable procedures can prevent minor injuries, life-changing ones and fatal ones, and also minimise the chances of operators facing fines or other damaging consequences for their business.

When operating a warehouse, health and safety must come before efficiency. Always. The busy nature of warehouses, and the fact people are working with machinery, or they or vehicles are constantly moving around the warehouse, creates a wide range of health and safety hazards.

Operators must strive to make conditions in these workplaces as safe as possible. Failing to do so could see workers become involved in serious accidents… fatal ones even, and the operator themselves could then face some serious consequences.

We've put together a guide to improving health and safety in the warehouse... Read our Guide to Improving Warehouse Safety, here.

Our Rollertrack Loading Systems, which we call 'Rollerbeds, or 'Rollertrack', reduce the damage caused by forklift trucks and also involve fewer workers in loading and unloading vehicles. The pneumatic rise-and-fall floor enable them to transfer a variety of pallets and containers. 

Built-in rollerbed systems, which it’s possible to integrate into the existing floor of vans, trucks and trailers, and which we can tailor to your requirements. These are extremely safe during loading and while the goods are in transit, are easy to maintain and only require one or two people to take care of the loading;

The Slipchain solution provides full safety for high volumes of loading and unloading. To get things moving, all you have to do is push a button.

The tracks on the platform of this modular design rise up and transfer the load from the Slipchain dock and into your trailer, or from the truck, as you wish. This durable system requires very little work to existing structures or to your trailer, and u can connect it easily to production line conveyors or integrate it into your building.

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