BOZP for car repair and tyre shops — vehicle lifts, welding and chemicals

The risk assessment of a workshop must cover four large groups of hazards — each with its own regulations and its own most frequent injuries.

Stationary, mobile and transportable workshop lifting equipment designed for lifting a vehicle is reserved technical equipment of lifting group B — it is expressly listed in Annex No. 1 II. časť písm. d) bod 3 of Decree No. 508/2009 Coll. A two-post and a scissor lift therefore need professional inspections and professional tests at the intervals set by the annex to the decree, operators familiarised with the manufacturer's instructions and operating documentation.

• Professional inspections and tests — carried out by an inspection technician holding a valid certificate; inspection reports are the first document an inspection asks for in a workshop.
• Daily pre-use check by the operator — the condition of ropes, chains, safety latches and stops before work begins; a damaged lift is not used.
• Mechanical safety latches — a vehicle is never left hanging on the hydraulics alone; when working under the vehicle, the latches must be engaged.
• Trolley jacks and axle stands — a trolley jack is for lifting, not for supporting; work under a vehicle only with axle stands on a load-bearing surface.

Welding and flame cutting in the workshop are subject to fire-protection measures under Act No. 314/2001 Coll. — assessment of the welding site, removal of flammable substances, fire-fighting equipment at hand and supervision after the work ends. Where the nature of the activity requires it, a fire assistance patrol is established under Decree No. 121/2002 Coll. The welder must hold a valid professional competence and welding equipment must be maintained in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions.

On top of this comes the ordinary OPP agenda of the operation: fire-protection documentation, employee training, fire extinguisher inspections at least once every 24 months (§ 9 of Decree No. 347/2022 Coll.) and order in the storage of oils, thinners and tyres — from the fire point of view, a tyre store is an extremely loaded space. We prepare OPP documentation and training for workshops together with BOZP.

The employer must provide an occupational health service from the first employee (§ 30 of Act No. 355/2007 Coll.). Mechanics are typically exposed to noise, vibration from tools, chemical factors and physical load — these factors determine the classification of work into categories under § 31 and Decree No. 448/2007 Coll. and the scope of preventive medical examinations under § 30e. For categories 1 and 2 we provide the PZS on a contracted basis under § 30aa — together with BOZP from a single partner.

• Pressure equipment — the compressor and air receiver are pressure equipment under Decree No. 508/2009 Coll.; the intervals of professional inspections and tests are set by the annex to the decree.
• Electrical equipment — the workshop's electrical installation, welding machines, charging stations for electric vehicles; inspections under standards STN 33 1600 and STN 33 1610.
• Gas equipment — gas heating of the hall and technical gases (acetylene, oxygen, argon); store and handle cylinders in accordance with the regulations and the manufacturer's instructions.
• Emission test bays and paint shops — extraction, filtration and ventilation are part of the risk assessment; spray booths have their own operating and fire-safety requirements.

The basis is initial familiarisation on starting work and refresher familiarisation at least once every three years under § 7 ods. 5 of Act No. 124/2006 Coll. Depending on the activities, professional competences are added: a welding licence, familiarisation with the operation of lifting equipment in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions, electrotechnical competence for work on electrical equipment and special preparation for the high-voltage systems of hybrids and electric cars. Contracted instruction may be delivered only by a person holding an authorisation of the National Labour Inspectorate — Alpha Safety is authorised to carry out education and training.

The Labour Inspectorate may, under § 19 of Act No. 125/2006 Coll., impose a fine of up to 100,000 euros; for an occupational accident with serious bodily harm at least 20,000 euros and for a fatal accident at least 33,000 euros. The Regional Public Health Authority imposes fines from 150 to 20,000 euros for breaches in the area of health protection (categorisation, chemical factors, PZS) under § 57 ods. 43 písm. a) of Act No. 355/2007 Coll. The most frequently sanctioned shortcomings in workshops: lifts without professional tests, missing safety data sheets and welding without fire-protection measures.

Alpha Safety s.r.o. is an external provider of comprehensive safety services for car repair shops, tyre shops, body shops and paint shops throughout Slovakia. We take over the whole agenda — BOZP, OPP, PZS and inspections — in one flat monthly fee, so you can focus on the cars.

• BOZP — risk assessment of the workshop, working procedures for lifts, welding and chemical substances, complete documentation and representation during inspections.
• VTZ inspections — vehicle service lifts, compressors, electrical installations, gas equipment; inspection reports and deadline records.
• OPP — fire-protection documentation, measures for welding, training and fire extinguisher inspections.
• PZS — categorisation of mechanics' work, preventive medical examinations, surveillance over chemical factors and noise.
• Training — employee familiarisation, welders, operation of lifting equipment, preparation for work on electric vehicles.

The most frequent finding in workshops: a lift that "works, so nobody deals with it" — without a professional inspection, with an expired test or with no documentation at all. Owners tend to be surprised that a two-post lift is reserved technical equipment with the same regime as a crane in a factory. The second evergreen is winter welding in the corner of the workshop — without assessing the site, without a fire extinguisher at hand.

With chemical factors we find thinners decanted into unmarked bottles and missing safety data sheets; with OOPP, grinding without goggles "because it's just for a moment". After the system is put in place — inspections with deadline records, simple working procedures and short practical training — our clients keep the workshop in order without it costing them time away from repairs.