Do You Need a Ticket to Operate an Excavator

Do You Need a Ticket to Operate an Excavator?

Are you looking for an excavator ticket in Perth?

Excavators are a common piece of machinery on job sites. With there assortments of attachments and strength they are used for all sorts of job. If your looking to increase your versatility on a job site you should consider getting a getting a ticket that allows you to operate them.

In This Article

Do you need a licence to operate an excavator?
What’s the law in Australia for operating an excavator?
How can I prove my excavator competency?
What sort of operator experience is considered?

Do you need a licence to operate an excavator?

The short answer is no, but it isn’t that easy. While you no longer need to have an excavator licence to operate an excavator for typical excavation work, you will need to prove your competence in the way of certification (DIY use of an excavator on private property is an exception to this). Be wary though, there are still 29 separate classes of high-risk excavator-related work that will still require a special licence.

In the case of typical excavator work, instead of having a licence that you need to renew, you now need to prove that you have the right skills and experience to operate the excavator at the time of hire/operation. Despite this, there’s good news for the DIY Warriors on the weekend!

You will not need certification for non-commercial use of private property. No certification or licence is required if you hire a dingo, mini excavator or excavator for private use in a non-commercial DIY project, although the machine supplier will inform you about safety and general operational use.

What is the law for the operation of the excavator in Australia?

Under the new Australian Work Health and Safety Regulations, you no longer need to hold a terrestrial or special crane (EPC) certificate to operate the following types of equipment:

Excavator is (class LE)
Front end loader/backhoe loader (class LB)
Front-end loader (class LL)
Loader for skid steering (class LS)
Dozer The Dozer (LZ)
Grader: Grader (LG)
Scrapers (LP)

According to WorkSafe QLD, “as a PCBU with plant management or control, you must insure that operators are competent to use the equipment.” Under the new rules, the company managing the work site is now responsible for ensuring that the person operating the machine is competent to do so. Businesses can make this easier by means of certification.

Management or control business of the plant (or the supplier in the case of residential DIY project hires) must insure:

Operators shall receive adequate information, training, training and supervision.
Operators shall be competent
Appropriate use of equipment to minimise any risks to health and safety

Be wary, however, you will be required to have a high-risk work licence for activities involving demolition and removal of asbestos, as well as for the operation of certain types of cranes and hoists, EWP booms, forklifts, boilers, steam turbines and stackers.

How can I prove the competence of my excavator?

While each business assesses its competence differently, it will generally require tangible evidence or a record of proof that you are capable of operating an excavator. You’re not going to have to worry if you’ve had a licence before, have a record of working and operating a heavy machine in Australia, or have a record of past excavator training. However, if you don’t have any of these, you’ll probably need to do some kind of training, which is extremely beneficial in teaching you the best way to operate the excavator. Such training can be acquired by a number of WorkCover Accredited Training and Evaluation Organizations.