Portable ramps for vehicles

The mandatory standard prescribes requirements for the design, construction, performance and labelling of portable ramps for vehicles with a nominated capacity of up to and including 1,500 kilograms.

About portable ramps for vehicles

The mandatory standard was last updated on 1 December 2017 and applies to portable ramps for vehicles consisting of an incline and a platform onto which a vehicle is driven for the purpose of maintenance (usually by a mechanic) or display, for example at vehicle road shows or car sale yards.

Mandatory standard

The Consumer Goods (Portable Ramps for Vehicles) Safety Standard 2017 sets out the requirements for portable ramps for vehicles.

The mandatory standard is based on certain sections of the voluntary Australian Standard AS 2640:2016 Portable ramps for vehicles, which is available from SAI Global. The ACCC may be able to make a copy of the standard available for viewing at one of its offices subject to licensing conditions.

You must consult the mandatory standard for these details.

Key requirements

These requirements aim to give suppliers a general idea of what is required by the mandatory standard. Suppliers must not rely on this information as a complete guide to compliance.

Design and construction

Materials

Ramps must be free from blow holes, hard spots, shrinkage defects, cracks or other defects which would adversely affect the strength of the material.

Design

The ratio of the base width to the ramp height must not be less than 1.2:1.

Prevention of roll off

Each ramp must be able to stop the vehicle from rolling down its incline.

Prevention of over travel

Each ramp must be able to prevent the vehicle travelling forward off the platform in a direction opposite to the incline.

Finish

Surfaces must be finished in such a manner to prevent injury to the operator or damage to the tyre.

Testing

While the mandatory standard includes some features you can visually check, such as instructions for use and marking, it also specifies testing to ensure that portable ramps for vehicles meet requirements for design, construction and performance. Suppliers need to organise this testing through specialist laboratories, preferably with NATA accreditation.

Safety markings

Portable ramps for vehicles must also be supplied with a range of information, including instructions for safe use and assembly instructions (if assembly is required). A new warning plate must also be permanently attached to each ramp as follows (not to scale):

More information is available in the Explanatory Statement available on the Federal Register of Legislation website.

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