European Standard
BS EN 81-20
BS EN 81-20:2020 — Safety rules for the construction and installation of lifts
- 2016
- Established
- 300+
- Sites covered
- 800+
- Lifts maintained
- <1hr
- Emergency response
All standards
Applies to
The design and installation of new passenger and goods-passenger lifts.
Summary
The current European safety standard for new lifts in the UK and EU. Replaced the older EN 81-1 (traction) and EN 81-2 (hydraulic) in 2017, with tighter requirements around car-top working space, refuge spaces in the pit, and protection against unintended car movement.
Who must comply
Lift installers, modernisers and the duty-holders specifying new equipment.
Key requirements
- Strengthened car-top barriers and refuge spaces in the pit.
- Mandatory rope-brake or sheave clamp protection against Unintended Car Movement (UCM).
- PESSRAL — programmable electronic safety circuits to defined integrity levels.
- Improved door-zone monitoring and ascending-car overspeed protection (UCMP).
- Stricter requirements for emergency lighting, alarm and two-way communication.
How we help
All new installations and significant modernisations we deliver are designed to BS EN 81-20:2020 (with safety components tested to BS EN 81-50). We can also advise on bringing older 81-1/81-2 lifts up to current safety expectations.
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