When should I replace my harness?

A harness is no longer considered safe and should not be used when:

• If you do not have an individual serial number. Without a serial number you are unable to trace the harness or verify if the harness has been inspected and therefore cannot be sure if it will be safe.
• If you cannot find a manufacturing date. If you do not have a manufacturing date, there is no way to confirm if the harness is within its working life.
• If you cannot find an inspection date recorded within the last 12 months. HSE guidelines recommend an inspection by a professional service every 6 months but PPE regulations require a minimum of 12 monthly inspections which should be recorded on the harness itself.
• If the D ring, plastic back plate, fasteners, web tidies, adjusters or connectors do not look right (check the 'Hardware inspection' question for details).
• If the webbing does not look right (check the 'Webbing inspection' question for details).