Most people think of a gate service as oiling the hinges. The real job is checking that a heavy machine still stops and reverses when it should. Automated gates drift out of adjustment as hinges wear, posts settle and sensors get dirty, and a gate that was safe at installation can become dangerous without anyone noticing. In Kent, the 2025 prosecution of a Tonbridge firm after a sliding gate fell and crushed a homeowner showed what is at stake when gates are not installed and checked properly.
Why a Service Is a Safety Job
The Health and Safety Executive says the forces a gate exerts should be measured before it goes into service and periodically re-measured as part of planned maintenance. It also warns that photoelectric beams alone do not guarantee a person will be detected, and that safety edges work best combined with force limitation. HSE issued its alert after two children died trapped between a gate edge and a post in 2010. Those are the checks a proper service repeats, and they cannot be done by eye.
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How Often to Service a Gate
Gate Safe recommends that automatic gates are serviced every six months by a trained installer. A gate used dozens of times a day, or one on an exposed coastal plot, may need more frequent attention; a lightly used gate on a sheltered drive still needs its safety devices checked at least that often. There is no legal requirement for a private homeowner to have a maintenance contract, but the homeowner is still the person a claim is made against if the gate causes harm.
What a Proper Service Includes
A good service starts with a visual inspection of the gate, posts, hinges and motors, looking for wear, movement and corrosion. The engineer then tests every safety device: photocells, safety edges and any loop detectors, making sure each one stops and reverses the gate. The closing force is measured with a calibrated force tester and the results recorded. Moving parts are cleaned and lubricated, the manual release is tested, battery backups are checked, and any underground motor boxes are inspected for water. The visit ends with an entry in the gate's log book.
The force test is the part to insist on. The industry code of practice, published by the Door and Hardware Federation, expects force testing at installation and at every service. If an engineer services your gate without a force meter, the most important check has not been done.
What a Service Costs
Price guides put an annual service at roughly £100 to £200, a single inspection visit at £80 to £180, and a service plan at £150 to £500 a year depending on the system and the number of visits. Trade2Base, a quoting tool used by installers, gives £120 to £300 for a service with force test. Call-outs for faults are charged separately and vary widely, so ask whether a service plan includes priority call-outs or discounted labour. Compared with the cost of the gate itself, regular servicing is a small price for keeping it safe.
Common Faults a Service Catches
Dirty or misaligned photocells are the most common cause of a gate that will not close. Motor manufacturers such as BFT tell owners to check that photocells and safety edges are clean, unobstructed and aligned before anything else. On 230 volt swing motors, a failing capacitor makes the motor hum without turning, often stopping one leaf. Limit switches drift, so the gate stops short or overruns. Hinges wear and leaves drop, which makes the gate bind and trip the motor's force limit.
Underground motors bring their own risk. Even a well-sealed motor sits in a foundation box that must drain; manufacturers such as CAME specify drainage precisely, and owners on PistonHeads describe replacing motors repeatedly until drain holes were added. A service should always include lifting the covers and checking for standing water.
Checks You Can Do Between Services
Some simple checks are worth doing monthly. Keep the photocell lenses clean and free of cobwebs, leaves and, on the coast, salt film. Keep the area around the gate and the track clear of gravel and debris. Watch the gate open and close and listen for new noises, jerky movement or a leaf that no longer meets its partner. Check that the manual release key is where you can find it. If anything changes, stop using the automatic function and call an engineer, rather than adjusting settings yourself.
Coastal and Rural Kent
Location changes the maintenance load. On the coast at Whitstable, Thanet or Folkestone, salt clouds photocell lenses, attacks fixings and works into motor housings, so a six-month interval is the minimum. Rinsing the gate with fresh water after winter storms helps. In the Weald and on farm drives, leaves, mud and livestock bring their own problems, and long cable runs to remote gates are worth checking for damage from vehicles and animals.
Who Is Liable if a Gate Causes Harm
HSE explains that householders with private gates do not have duties under health and safety law, but they may still be sued for any harm or damage their gate causes. A log book showing regular servicing and force testing is your evidence that you took reasonable care. It also helps when you sell, because buyers and their surveyors increasingly ask about gate safety. A regular service and repair arrangement keeps that record up to date.
When Servicing Turns Into Replacement
Eventually the cost of keeping an old system running outweighs replacing it. One PistonHeads owner put the cost of new motors and controls on a 22-year-old system at about £4,000. Signs that replacement is near include repeated motor failures, parts no longer being made, and a gate that cannot be brought within modern force limits. The lifespan of an electric gate depends heavily on how well it has been looked after, and a gate that has been serviced every six months will usually last far longer than one that has not.
If your gate stops working between services, check the power, the remote and the photocells first, and leave anything involving the control board, force settings or the motor to a trained engineer.
Keeping the Log Book
Every automated gate should have a log book, handed over at installation and filled in at each visit. It records what was checked, the force readings, any faults found and parts replaced. Keep it with the house documents. It is your evidence of reasonable care if the gate is ever involved in an accident, and it is one of the first things a careful buyer's surveyor will ask to see. If your gate came without one, ask the next engineer to start one.
Choosing a Service Plan
Service plans vary. Compare what each includes: the number of visits a year, whether a force test is done every time, whether call-outs are covered or discounted, how quickly an engineer will attend if the gate fails, and whether common parts such as photocells and remotes are included. A plan from the firm that installed the gate has the advantage of knowledge of the system, but any trained engineer who carries parts for your motor brand can service it. Ask for the force test results to be written in the log book at every visit.