Inspection, Handover, and Tagging Procedures
Inspection is a documented process, not a glance. The competent inspector checks foundations, base plates, standards, ledgers, transoms, bracing, ties, platform decking, guardrails, toe boards, and access, and records findings. Inspection is required before first use, at intervals not exceeding seven days, and after any event (adverse weather, impact, alteration, or a period without use). Handover is the formal transfer of a completed, inspected scaffold to the user, with a handover certificate and a tag/scafftag system showing status (e.g. 'scaffold incomplete', 'scaffold complete - do not alter', 'scaffold to be dismantled').
Traps: assuming a tag replaces a written inspection record (it does not); confusing 'handover' with 'inspection' (handover is a one-off transfer, inspection is periodic); believing a green tag means the scaffold can be modified by anyone (alteration voids the tag and requires re-inspection); and forgetting that scaffolds left standing but unused still need periodic inspection.
Worked rule of thumb: Tag status must match the latest written report. If the report says 'incomplete', the tag says incomplete regardless of how finished it looks. Any alteration triggers re-inspection and a new handover before use.