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LEV testing - servicing vs testing
Servicing and testing sound like the same thing done to your extraction, and the words get used interchangeably. They are not the same - and assuming a service covers the statutory test is a common and costly mistake.
The short answer
LEV servicing is maintenance - keeping the system in working order by changing filters, checking the fan, and putting right what has worn. LEV testing is the statutory thorough examination and test that measures whether the system is actually controlling exposure and produces a formal report. They are different activities with different purposes, and a service does not satisfy the legal testing duty. You need both: maintenance to keep it working, testing to prove it does.
What servicing is
LEV servicing is maintenance - the routine work of keeping the extraction in good working order between statutory tests. It covers things like changing or cleaning filters, checking and lubricating the fan, inspecting ductwork and hoses, and putting right minor wear before it becomes a problem. Its purpose is reliability and upkeep: keeping the system running as it should day to day.
This is genuinely valuable and genuinely required - COSHH expects LEV to be maintained in efficient working order, not just tested every so often, so a maintenance regime between tests is part of the duty. But servicing is about keeping the system going; it is not, in itself, the formal assessment of whether the system is controlling exposure to the standard. That is a different job.
What testing is
LEV testing is the thorough examination and test - the statutory, structured assessment carried out to HSG258 that measures whether the system is actually controlling exposure. It is a three-stage examination: a visual check of condition, measurement of technical performance such as capture and face velocity at each point, and a judgement on whether exposure is adequately controlled - resulting in a formal report with figures and any remedial actions.
Its purpose is proof, not upkeep. Where servicing keeps the system running, testing proves the running system is doing its job of protecting people, and produces the evidence COSHH requires - the report that an inspector will ask to see. It is carried out by a competent examiner, at least every 14 months, and it is the specific duty the law attaches to LEV.
Why the difference matters
The costly confusion is assuming a service covers the statutory test. It does not. A maintenance visit that changes the filters and checks the fan keeps the system running, but it is not the thorough examination and test the law requires, and it does not produce the measured report that evidences compliance. A business that services its LEV diligently but has never had it properly tested has maintained the system without ever proving it controls exposure - and is not meeting the testing duty.
The reverse gap matters too: testing every 14 months without maintaining the system in between lets it degrade between examinations, so it may fail the next test having drifted unmaintained. The two duties are distinct and complementary - servicing keeps the system from degrading, testing confirms it is controlling exposure - and meeting one does not discharge the other.
How they work together
Done together, servicing and testing form a complete regime. Regular servicing keeps the extraction in good working order, catching wear and changing filters so the system holds its performance. The statutory test, on its cycle, measures and confirms that the maintained system is genuinely controlling exposure, and documents it. Maintenance keeps it working; testing proves it works and evidences that it does.
This is also why good servicing tends to make for better test results. A system properly maintained between tests is far less likely to have degraded into a fail, so the two support each other - the upkeep protects the performance that the test then verifies. Neither replaces the other, but together they keep the system both running and proven.
The takeaway
The distinction to hold onto is simple: servicing is maintenance to keep the system running; testing is the statutory examination to prove it controls exposure. They are different jobs, they meet different parts of the COSHH duty, and one does not substitute for the other. Treating a service as if it were the test - or the test as if it removed the need for maintenance - leaves a gap in your compliance.
So make sure you are doing both: maintaining the LEV between tests to keep it working, and having it thoroughly examined and tested on the COSHH cycle to prove it works and evidence it. When both are in place and clearly distinguished, your extraction is genuinely kept in order and genuinely proven - which is exactly what the two duties, correctly understood, are there to achieve.
Questions
Servicing is maintenance - keeping the system running by changing filters, checking the fan and putting right wear. Testing is the statutory thorough examination and test that measures whether the system controls exposure and produces a formal report. They are different jobs.
No. A maintenance visit keeps the system running but is not the thorough examination and test the law requires, and does not produce the measured report that evidences compliance. Servicing diligently without testing does not meet the testing duty.
Routine maintenance - changing or cleaning filters, checking and lubricating the fan, inspecting ductwork and hoses, and putting right minor wear - to keep the system in efficient working order between statutory tests.
A three-stage thorough examination and test to HSG258 - a visual check, measured performance such as capture and face velocity at each point, and a judgement on control - by a competent examiner, at least every 14 months, with a formal report.
Yes. COSHH requires the LEV both maintained in efficient working order and thoroughly examined and tested. Servicing keeps it from degrading; testing confirms and evidences that it controls exposure. One does not discharge the other.
Generally, yes. A system properly maintained between tests is far less likely to have degraded into a fail, so the upkeep protects the performance that the test then verifies. The two support each other.
We carry out the statutory thorough examination and test to HSG258 - the measured proof that your extraction controls exposure.
