Who should do inspections of equipment? Are these people qualified to inspect that piece of equipment?  What level of inspection was performed?  These are the questions you should be asking.

The answers to these questions will vary with each job site and type of equipment used. Everyone knows and agrees that inspections are necessary before equipment use, but it is also important to know that the inspector is qualified, knows what to look for, and is inspecting the equipment to the appropriate level of detail for the intended use.

Here are a few pictures that demonstrate how relying on a simple tag attached to the equipment and not inspecting the equipment yourself before use may be inviting tragedy or trouble.

The picture below clearly shows the equipment was inspected by Joe (likely from the rental company) and passed inspection.

Do you trust it? No.  You do your own inspection and guess what you find?

These are the welds that hold the man basket to the boom.  This is a simple discovery that may have saved your life (and/or others lives).

Remember, inspect (and document) before each use.