Forklift Truck Skills Test

Everything you need to know

Whilst there is no forklift equivalent of a licence as there is for cars, motorcycles or lorries, a forklift driver is still required to complete and pass a mandatory safety training course on how to load and operate a forklift vehicle in order to obtain a certificate granting them permission to operate a forklift truck. Upon receiving their forklift certification, an individual is deemed to be able to operate the truck safely and is able to use such a vehicle to lift heavy loads.

What is the Forklift Truck Skills Test?

Our forklift truck theory test is designed to assess an individual’s knowledge of how to safely operate and load a forklift vehicle. Candidates are presented with a variety of question styles, including true or false statements and multiple-choice questions. They are allocated 5 minutes to answer 10 questions and their responses are automatically marked. A point is awarded for each correct answer provided on the theory test. For some questions, multiple answers may be required. In this case, the sum of these answers will result in one point being awarded for the question. Skipped questions will result in no point being awarded.

Practice test available
Randomised presentation
5 minutes available

4 minutes average completion time
10 questions presented
10 questions in pool

Who is the Forklift Truck Skills Test Aimed at?

Due to the wide variety of forklift vehicles available nowadays, a forklift training test such as ours would be beneficial for many businesses - particularly those that involve the loading, lifting, transportation and management of heavy loads. This may include logistics companies, distribution warehouses, shipping yards, construction sites and maintenance teams, regardless of size.

If you are an employer or hiring manager looking to recruit your latest forklift operator, we highly recommend using this theory test during your pre-employment recruitment phase in order to gain insight into your candidates' level of forklift training and essential operator knowledge.

Skills Measured

01 Operational Safety: An essential skill for any vehicle driver, our forklift training test examines your potential operators' knowledge of how to safely and effectively operate a forklift truck. This includes practical driving skills (including reversing and applying the brake), lowering and raising the forks, essential maintenance of the truck and refuelling the forklift.
02 Lift and Load Safety: Our exam also assesses how competent your forklift operator's knowledge is of how to load the truck and lift heavy goods safely and effectively. This includes determining the weight that your specific forklift vehicle can lift, how to transport heavy loads, knowing what fork height should be used and how to maintain the stability of the truck whilst transporting materials.
03 Hazard Awareness: As well as the ability to operate and load a forklift vehicle, any professional forklift truck operator must also be proficient in hazard awareness both within and outside the vehicle. This could include detecting safety concerns such as excessive loads, speeding, unbalanced or unsecured loads, people operating the truck without sufficient training and elevated loads blocking the forwards view of the operator driving the forklift.

Why Use a Forklift Truck Skills Test?

Safety

Accidents involving forklift vehicles in the workplace are all too common. Statistics from the British Safety Council report that around 5 accidents occur every day whilst operating forklift vehicles and around 25% of all workplace transport-related injuries in the UK are the result of accidents occurring when using forklift trucks. Overall, this amounts to around 1,300 people hospitalised every year with life-changing and debilitating injuries ranging from dislocations to amputations - not to mention the loss of life.

Proper training is essential in order to reduce and prevent such catastrophic accidents. By using our forklift skills test, you can gauge your candidates' levels of forklift training before recruiting them, allowing you to hire the best, most highly-skilled operators for your team who can ensure high levels of safety at all times.

Forklift training is a legal requirement

As mentioned, in order to receive a forklift certificate that allows you to become a forklift operator, you must first complete and pass a mandatory written theory test and practical safety training exam. Our test can help you identify strong candidates with high levels of training qualifications and who possess competent operational and safety skills. By extension, this can help your company avoid preventable workplace injuries and accidents and ensure your legal compliance.