Isolation / lock-off permit
Draft an isolation / lock-off (LOTO) permit: identify every energy source, lock off with personal locks, prove dead with the live-dead-live sequence, scope the permitted work and control re-energisation. Print it for the issuing authority to review and sign on site.
Free to use — no signup, nothing stored. Use as a planning aid, then review against the actual site.
Issue · brief · sign off
Permit to work
printable · time-bound · signed
Isolation / Lock-Off Permit — details
Fill in the permit, then print it for wet-ink signature. This tool drafts the form — only the named issuing authority on site can issue the permit and authorise work to start.
Validity window
This permit lapses immediately if the isolation is broken for any reason. If the isolation is interrupted, the prove-dead sequence must be repeated and a new permit issued before work resumes.
Identify the system and energy sources
You can only isolate what you have identified. Trace every source of energy before isolating anything.
Isolate & lock off
Isolate at a secure point and lock it so it cannot be re-energised while work is in progress.
Prove dead
The single most important electrical control. Prove the test instrument works, test the conductors, then prove the instrument again — live, dead, live.
Permitted work
Define exactly what this isolation permits — and what it does not cover.
Authorisation
Signed on the printed permit. The issuing authority confirms the controls are in place; the person accepting the permit confirms they understand and will work to it.
Isolation / Lock-Off Permit
This permit lapses immediately if the isolation is broken for any reason. If the isolation is interrupted, the prove-dead sequence must be repeated and a new permit issued before work resumes.
- Only the named issuing authority may issue this permit and authorise work to start.
- Never remove another person's lock — each worker removes only their own.
- Treat the system as live until it has been proved dead at the point of work.
Identify the system and energy sources
- System / circuit / plant to be isolated clearly identified: __________________________
- Drawing / circuit reference: __________________________
- [Critical] All energy sources identified — electrical, mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic, gravity and stored energy
Isolate & lock off
- Point(s) of isolation listed: __________________________
- [Critical] Isolation locked off with personal lock(s); multi-hasp fitted where several workers rely on the same isolation
- [Critical] Keys retained by the workers who fitted the locks
- Caution / danger tags fitted at the points of isolation
Prove dead
- [Critical] Voltage indicator proved on a known live source BEFORE and AFTER testing — the live-dead-live sequence
- GS38-compliant test equipment used for electrical proving
- [Critical] Stored energy released or secured — capacitors discharged, springs released, suspended loads supported, pressure vented
Permitted work
- Scope of work permitted under this isolation: __________________________
- Limits — work NOT covered by this permit: __________________________
Authorisation
By signing, the issuing authority confirms the controls above are in place. The permit holder confirms they understand the conditions and will work to them.
Close-out & cancellation
Completed on site when the work and any post-work watch are finished. The permit is only cancelled once every line is confirmed.
- All persons clear of the system and tools removed
- Guards, covers and barriers refitted
- Locks removed only by their owners; multi-hasp clear
- System re-energised and tested for correct, safe operation
- Permit cancelled — the isolation is no longer in force
Safe isolation, in brief
Before anyone works on plant or a circuit, it must be made — and proved — safe. The Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 (reg 13) require precautions so that equipment made dead cannot become live while work is in progress, and HSE's HSG85 “Electricity at work: safe working practices” sets out how. The same principle applies to every energy source, not just electricity — mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic, gravity and stored energy can all injure if they are not secured.
This permit walks the four steps: identify the system and every source of energy, isolate and lock off, prove dead, then define the permitted work — and controls the re-energisation at close-out.
Why prove dead with live-dead-live
An isolation that is not proved dead is just an assumption. The safe sequence is live, dead, live: prove your voltage indicator on a known live source, test the conductors you are about to work on, then prove the indicator on the known source again. The second prove is what confirms the tester was still working when it read dead — skip it and a faulty instrument can tell you a live circuit is safe. Use GS38-compliant test equipment for electrical proving, and release or secure any stored energy — capacitors, springs, suspended loads, trapped pressure — before treating the system as safe.
Personal locks, personal keys
Locks are personal. Each worker fits their own lock and keeps the key; where several people work on one isolation, every lock goes on a multi-hasp so the isolation cannot be removed until everyone is clear. Never remove another person's lock, and treat the system as live until it has been proved dead at the point of work. The permit lapses the moment the isolation is broken for any reason — if that happens, prove dead again and re-issue before work resumes.
This template aligns with HSE's HSG85 and the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989. It drafts the form only — the permit is live work, and only the named issuing authority on site can issue it and authorise the work to start.
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