Elevator & Escalator Inspection

Elevator and lift inspection in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and across the UAE, carried out to Dubai Municipality and Abu Dhabi regulations by an ISO 17020 accredited inspection body listed on the Abu Dhabi City Municipality Approved Third Party Inspection Bodies register. Third-party inspection, independent of the maintenance contractor. Last reviewed: August 2026.

Lifts and escalators carry the public continuously, and their safety depends on devices that only operate in a failure — safety gear, overspeed governors, buffers. Those devices sit idle for years and are proven only by testing them under load, which is the part of inspection most often reduced to a visual check. ITMAD carries out the tests the standards require rather than substituting a visual examination.

Equipment covered

• Passenger lifts, traction and hydraulic
• Goods and service lifts
• Firefighting and evacuation lifts
• Machine room-less (MRL) lifts
• Escalators and moving walkways
• Platform and wheelchair lifts
• Stairlifts
• Car and vehicle lifts
• Dumbwaiters and service hoists
• Home and villa lifts

Elevator and lift inspection regulations

In Dubai, periodic third-party lift inspection is required by Dubai Municipality, commonly at annual intervals. Abu Dhabi applies equivalent requirements under Abu Dhabi City Municipality regulations. Inspection is also required on commissioning, after major modification or replacement of a safety component, and following an entrapment or incident. Firefighting lifts carry additional periodic verification of their firefighting operation. ITMAD issues certificates in the format each municipality requires.

Load testing

Safety gear, brake and traction tests are carried out with rated load as the standard requires. Test weights are brought to the installation and removed on completion — access and timing need planning in advance, particularly in occupied buildings. We agree the arrangements before attendance rather than on the day.

Lift inspection

• Safety gear operation, tested rather than inspected — the device that stops a falling car and the one most likely to have seized
• Overspeed governor tripping speed, verified against the rated speed and the setting on the device
• Brake performance and holding capability, including redundancy where the design provides it
• Traction assessment and rope grip
• Suspension ropes or belts assessed against discard criteria, terminations and equalisation
• Buffers, their type, condition and reset behaviour
• Re-levelling and unintended car movement protection
• Landing and car door locking, closing forces (maximum 150 N under EN 81-20) and reopening devices
• Car and counterweight guides, shoes and rollers
• Machine, drive, gearbox and sheave condition
• Controller, limit and final limit switches, and inspection control operation
• Alarm, intercom and emergency communication, verified as answered rather than merely audible
• Emergency manual operation and passenger release procedure
• Pit, headroom, refuge spaces and machine room access and condition
• Hydraulic safety valves, pipework and pressure test on hydraulic installations

Escalator and walkway inspection

• Step and pallet condition, gaps, level and demarcation
• Comb plates, comb impact devices and step upthrust detection
• Handrail speed, synchronisation, condition and entry point protection
• Brake performance and stopping distance measured against the EN 115 permitted range
• Drive and step chain condition and elongation
• Skirting, deflectors and clearances
• Emergency stop devices, position and function
• Balustrade, cladding and lighting
• Truss condition and support arrangements

Standards applied

Inspection follows the standard specified by the governing authority or the installation's design basis: EN 81-20 for construction and installation of passenger and goods lifts, EN 81-50 for examination and tests, and EN 115 for escalators and moving walkways. Where an installation was built to American practice, ASME A17.1 and A17.2 apply. Requirements of the municipality having jurisdiction are applied alongside, and manufacturer instructions govern component-specific limits.

Independence from the maintenance contractor

Most lift inspection is carried out by the company holding the maintenance contract, which means the party assessing the condition is the party responsible for it. ITMAD does not maintain, repair, modernise or supply lifts. Where an inspection identifies a defect, the finding carries no commercial interest in who corrects it.

Who commissions this

• Building owners and facility management companies
• Developers at handover and defect liability expiry
• Owners associations and property managers
• Hotels, malls, hospitals and airports
• Government entities managing public buildings
• Owners requiring verification independent of the lift maintenance contractor

What you receive

• An inspection certificate in the format Dubai Municipality or Abu Dhabi City Municipality requires
• A report identifying each installation by number, type, capacity and location
• Test results for safety gear, governor, brake and traction, with measured values
• Escalator brake stopping distances measured against the EN 115 permitted range
• Findings with photographic evidence, classified by severity
• Clear statement of any installation that must be taken out of service
• Your installation register updated with next due dates, where we hold it

Frequently asked questions

How often must lifts be inspected in Dubai?

Periodic third-party examination is required annually in most cases, with the interval set by the municipality having jurisdiction. Inspection is also required on commissioning, after modernisation or replacement of a safety component, and following an entrapment or incident.

Can our maintenance company do the inspection?

They can, but the party assessing the installation is then the party responsible for maintaining it. Independent inspection separates the two, which is why many owners and owners associations commission it separately.

Does the lift need to be taken out of service?

Yes, for the duration of testing. Safety gear and brake tests require the car to be operated under controlled conditions with rated load. We schedule outside peak hours where the building requires it, and confirm the expected duration in advance.

What happens if the lift fails inspection?

The report states clearly whether the installation must be taken out of service or whether the defect can be corrected within a defined period. Findings are classified by severity so the decision is not left to interpretation.

Do you inspect villa and home lifts?

Yes. Home lifts, platform lifts and stairlifts are covered, and they are frequently overlooked because they sit outside a building's commercial maintenance contract.

Which standards do you inspect to?

Normally EN 81-20 and EN 81-50 for lifts and EN 115 for escalators, or ASME A17.1 and A17.2 where the installation was built to American practice, alongside the requirements of the municipality having jurisdiction.