A restraint lanyard does one job: it stops you reaching a position from which you could fall. Anchor it, set the length, and the geometry keeps the user away from the edge. Because it should never take a fall, it has no shock absorber, which makes it simpler, lighter and considerably cheaper than a fall arrest lanyard.
That is also what makes it dangerous if misapplied. A restraint lanyard used where a fall is possible transmits the full arrest force straight to the user with nothing to absorb it. The distinction is not a technicality; it determines whether the equipment is fit for the job.
This version has a plain eye at one end for connection to the harness via a karabiner, and a scaffold hook at the other for clipping directly to tube and structure.
Key Features
- Scaffold hook fitted: 50 mm class opening for clipping straight onto scaffold tube and structural members without an additional connector.
- 1.5 m fixed length: Restraint depends on a known length, and a fixed lanyard gives that certainty where an adjustable one relies on the setting being correct.
- 30 mm polyester webbing: Light and compact.
- Resistance 22 kN: Well above the requirement for restraint duty.
- BS EN 354: The lanyard standard.
- Plain eye version available: FA 40 300 15 at £6.12 cost, for use with your own connectors at both ends.
Technical Specifications
| Product Code |
Terminations |
Length |
Webbing |
Resistance |
Cost |
| FA 40 300 15 |
Plain eyes both ends |
1.5 m |
30 mm polyester |
22 kN |
£6.12 |
| FA 40 302 15 |
Plain eye + scaffold hook |
1.5 m |
30 mm polyester |
22 kN |
£15.51 |
The price difference is the scaffold hook. If you already have connectors, the plain eye version is a third of the cost.
BS EN 354 | RESTRAINT ONLY — No Energy Absorber | Category III PPE
Conforms to BS EN 354 for lanyards. This lanyard has no energy absorber and is not fall arrest equipment. It must only be used in restraint, where the anchor position and lanyard length make it impossible to reach a position from which a fall could occur. Where a fall is possible, a shock absorbing lanyard to BS EN 355 is required. Inspection by a competent person at intervals not exceeding 12 months.
Suitable Applications
Restraint suits flat roofs, platforms and open working areas where an anchor point and a fixed lanyard length can physically keep the user back from an edge. Typical uses are roof plant maintenance, inspection work, and working on open decks. It needs no clearance below and no fall clearance calculation, which simplifies matters considerably. What it does need is certainty about the geometry, and that comes from measurement rather than judgement.
More About This Product
The lanyard is where most fall protection systems are specified wrongly, and almost always in the same direction: a restraint lanyard used where fall arrest was needed.
It happens because the two look alike, cost similarly, hang in the same place in the store and are both described as lanyards. The difference is a folded pack of stitched webbing — the shock absorber — and on some designs it is tucked inside a cover where it is not obvious at a glance. A restraint lanyard is engineered on the assumption that it will never take a fall, and if it does, the forces reaching the body are far beyond what the human frame tolerates.
Fall Clearance: The Calculation Nobody Does
Ask most people how much clearance a 2 metre shock absorbing lanyard needs and they will say two metres. The real figure is a great deal more, and the gap between those two numbers is where people get hurt.
The calculation stacks up as follows. Lanyard length — as marked on the lanyard. Shock absorber deployment — the pack tears progressively and extends significantly. The figure for your specific lanyard is on its own label and must be read from there. The user's height below the attachment point — the dorsal D-ring is at shoulder height, so add roughly 1.5 m to reach the feet. A safety margin — because the calculation assumes ideal conditions and reality rarely provides them.
Added together these come to considerably more than the lanyard length, frequently more than double it. On a low working platform a shock absorbing lanyard may not prevent the ground being reached at all.
Where the clearance is not available, the answer is a retractable block, which arrests in a far shorter distance, or a restraint system where a fall is prevented rather than arrested.
How to Use the Restraint Lanyard
- Measure the geometry: From the anchor, with the lanyard fully extended, you must not be able to reach any fall position. Measure it.
- Anchor to a rated point: Capable of withstanding the applied forces.
- Connect to the harness dorsal D-ring via a suitable karabiner.
- Reassess if the anchor moves: Geometry that works at one anchor may not at the next.
- Never use where a fall is possible: If in any doubt, use a shock absorbing lanyard.
- Inspect before every use.
Warning: This is a restraint lanyard with no energy absorber. It will not safely arrest a fall. Use only where the anchor position and lanyard length make reaching a fall position impossible. If you cannot guarantee that for every position you may work in, use fall arrest.
Safety Information
- For use only by trained and competent persons within a safe system of work.
- Restraint use only. No energy absorber. Not fall arrest equipment.
- The anchor position and lanyard length must prevent reaching any fall position.
- Anchor to a point capable of withstanding the applied forces.
- Reassess the geometry whenever the anchor or working position changes.
- Inspect webbing, stitching, eye and hook before every use.
- Withdraw after any fall or shock loading.
- Inspection by a competent person required at intervals not exceeding 12 months.
Inspection and Maintenance
Inspect the full webbing length on both faces for cuts, abrasion, fraying, heat damage and chemical staining, and examine the stitching at both terminations closely, since that is where load concentrates. Check the plain eye for wear and the scaffold hook for gate operation, throat wear and positive locking. Polyester degrades under UV, so consider storage as part of the inspection. A restraint lanyard often lives clipped to a harness in a van, where sunlight through a window does more damage than the work does.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How is this different from a fall arrest lanyard?
No shock absorber. A fall arrest lanyard has a pack that tears progressively to limit the forces reaching you. This has none, because in restraint it should never take a fall. Using it where a fall is possible transmits the full arrest force directly to the user.
Q: How do I know restraint is appropriate?
Measure from the anchor with the lanyard extended. Can you reach anywhere you could fall from? If yes, restraint is not adequate. If you cannot answer for every position you might work in, use fall arrest instead.
Q: Which version, plain eyes or scaffold hook?
The scaffold hook version clips straight onto tube and structure without another connector, which is quicker. The plain eye version is a third of the price and suits anyone who already has connectors. If you are buying several, the plain eye version plus your own hooks is usually more economical.
Q: Can I use a longer lanyard?
Only if the geometry still prevents reaching a fall position. Longer lanyards give more working range but reduce the margin. The kernmantle rope versions come in 1 m, 1.5 m and 1.8 m for that reason.
