Are Fairground Rides Safe?

The question everyone has but often daren’t ask is: Are fairground rides safe? One can certainly understand the concerns people may have, as with any powerful machine comes danger if something goes wrong, and this includes cars, planes or anything else you place yourself into. With any risk comes appropriate safety concerns and checks, and We Are Tricycle we can help you understand what those procedures are.

What you may not realise is that today's funfair rides - a lot like cars - are much more high-tech than they used to be. Higher-quality metal is now used as a requirement, as well as computerised operating systems that can spot problems infinitely quicker than you or I. Safety checks, testing and enforcement of those standards is also a lot stricter today than it was in the funfairs and fairgrounds of the past.

Fairground Ride Safety Regulations

Funfair rides should be operated by professionals, have clear signage and barriers blocking the public from wandering into danger. Customers must be checked to be properly seated and secure and the weather conditions but be safe to operate in. With all these things in place an accident is extremely unlikely and you could easily argue that visiting a fun fair is much safer than crossing a road.

Nobody wants to see anything go wrong and have someone injured but from time to time it does happen. However it is extremely rare for accidents to happen, especially with a company that follows all safety procedures such as We Are Tricycle, and when no safety procedures have been ignored by guests.

You must always take into consideration who is running the attraction, are they trustworthy, has the company had any previous fines to do with flouting safety checks? If not then you can be confident that the company is running their business as professionally as they should be.

But it is a reminder that the machines themselves are perfectly safe when operated properly and under the right conditions. The vast majority of accidents are caused by human error, either by the person operating or customers wandering into harm's way. That’s why it is always vital to go with a trusted, reputable company.

The standard used to certify a fairground ride is safe is known as ADIPS; this stands for Amusement Device Inspection Procedure Scheme. It is a rigorous annual inspection looking at the safety of the structure, metal wear, electrics and safety barriers.

Should a ride fail this inspection it should not be in use. This is why it is always best to ask to see a copy of the ADIPS paperwork, to make sure it’s valid you can look out for the registration number and see that it matches the ride. You can also cross reference this data with the ADIPS website to make doubly-sure all is above board.

Funfair ride operators should also have public liability insurance of up to £10 million for their attractions and any reputable ride operator will be forthcoming with all the correct paperwork and safety measures.

We Are Tricycle adhere to all of our funfair hire safety obligations and put you and your guests' wellbeing as our top priority. Contact us to arrange funfair ride hire today!

More Guidance About Funfair Ride Safety

If you are asking whether funfair rides are safe, the most useful answer is not a simple yes or no. Safe operation depends on a chain of controls that includes inspection, testing, maintenance, setup, loading, supervision, weather monitoring and competent operation. Our Health and Safety FAQs provide a broad overview, while How Funfair Rides are Tested for Safety looks more specifically at the inspection side of amusement ride safety.

For organisers who want to understand the formal framework in more detail, What is the ADIPS scheme?, Non-destructive Testing of Funfair Rides, Funfair Ride Periodic Maintenance and Fairground Electrical Safety Regulations all explain different parts of the safety process. These pages are particularly useful if you are booking fairground rides for a public event and want to understand what sits behind the visible day-to-day operation.

Safe Operation Starts Before the First Passenger Boards

Ride safety begins well before an attraction opens to guests. Mobile rides are transported, assembled and checked at the event site, so correct setup is a major part of the process. You can read more about this in How to Assemble and Dismantle Funfair Rides, Funfair Ride Set Up and Tear Down Procedures and How Are Funfair Rides Transported?.

Once a ride is in position, daily and pre-use checks help operators identify problems before opening. Our Daily Safety Checks for Funfair Rides guide explains this operational layer, while How to Safely Load Funfair Rides looks at what happens once guests begin boarding.

Safety Also Depends on the Event Site

A mechanically sound ride still has to be positioned and operated within a well-managed event. Queue routes, access points, emergency space, crowd flow and the placement of nearby attractions all matter. Our guides to How to Place Funfair Rides Around the Site, How to Manage Queues at Funfairs and How to Use Crowd Barrier Fencing at Events explain how the wider site plan contributes to safer operation.

This is especially important when combining big funfair rides, family funfair attractions and rides, children's fairground rides and attractions and fairground side stalls and games within the same event footprint.

Weather, Ride Restrictions and Guest Safety

Outdoor funfairs also need to respond to changing weather. Wind, rain and other adverse conditions can affect whether particular attractions should continue operating. See How to Keep Funfair Rides Safe in Windy Conditions, How to Prepare Funfairs for Adverse Weather and Rainy Weather FAQs for more detail.

Guest suitability is another important part of ride safety. Height limits, health restrictions and operator decisions are there for a reason, so it is worth reading How Tall Do Children Have to Be for Fairground Rides?, Funfair Ride Health Restrictions and the Equality Act and Refusing Access to Funfair Rides if you are planning an event for a broad audience.

Planning a Safer Funfair with We Are Tricycle

We supply attractions for company fun days and corporate events, school events, council and local authority events, charity events, festivals, private functions and large public gatherings. The exact safety planning varies with the ride, venue, audience and event format, which is why we look at each booking individually rather than treating every event as the same.

For a broader overview of our approach, see How We Are Tricycle Protects Your Health And Safety. You can also browse the wider Guides section or Frequently Asked Fairground and Funfair Hire Questions for more practical information.