What a retail lighting survey is for
Shop lighting has two jobs. Display lighting sells product, and is a matter of brand and design. General lighting keeps staff and customers safe and lets colleagues work at the till, in the stockroom and on the delivery bay. A retail lighting survey focuses on the second job: measuring the lux levels that the standards recommend for each area, so you can prove the store is properly lit and find the zones that fall short. We also note where display schemes cause glare or leave aisles dark between feature lights.
Shop staff are covered by regulation 8 of the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992, and customers by your general duty under health and safety law. Retailers and their insurers take slips, trips and falls seriously, and lighting on steps, ramps, travelators and changes of floor level is often the first thing a claims handler asks about. BS EN 12464-1:2021 gives the benchmark values.
Shop lux levels
| Area | Em (lux) | Uo |
|---|---|---|
| Sales area | 300 | 0.40 |
| Till area | 500 | 0.60 |
| Wrapping table | 500 | 0.60 |
| Stores and stockrooms | 100 | 0.40 |
| Dispatch packing and handling | 300 | 0.60 |
| Loading bays | 150 | 0.40 |
| Staff toilets and washrooms | 200 | 0.40 |
| Staff canteens | 200 | 0.40 |
The sales-area figure is a minimum for general lighting, not a design target; most stores choose to light well above it for merchandising. Our survey confirms the general lighting meets the standard whether or not display lighting is switched on.
Areas we measure in a store
- Sales floor aisles and open areas, measured at floor and shelf heights.
- Tills and service counters, including self-checkout zones and click-and-collect desks.
- Fitting rooms, where customers judge colour and staff carry out security checks.
- Escalators, stairs, ramps and level changes, the highest-risk areas for customer falls.
- Stockrooms, cages and mezzanine storage, including high shelving that shadows the floor.
- Goods-in and delivery bays, often used before opening in poor daylight.
- Staff areas, offices and cash rooms.
- Shopfronts and entrance canopies, if you want external areas included.
Who asks for a retail lux report
Surveys are typically commissioned by store and area managers after staff complaints, by retail H&S teams standardising lighting across an estate, by insurers and claims handlers investigating a slip or trip, and by landlords and shopping centre managers recording the lighting condition in a unit at lease start or end. Shopfitters and LED contractors use our reports to show a new scheme was delivered as specified. For leased units, an insurance and dilapidations report is available from £190.
How the survey works
- We agree the store layout and areas in scope in advance.
- Most surveys are done before opening or after close, so we can measure without customers in aisles and with display lighting switched off where needed.
- Readings are taken with a calibrated lux meter on a grid across each area, with spot readings at every till.
- We note failed lamps, glare from track spots, dark zones between displays and control or timer faults.
What you receive
- A zone-by-zone report with average, minimum and uniformity against the BS EN 12464-1:2021 value.
- Pass, marginal or fail flags with a summary for area managers or insurers.
- Plans showing reading positions so stores can be re-checked consistently.
- Practical fixes that respect your display scheme, such as re-aiming, relamping or adding general lighting where display lighting leaves gaps.
Report turnaround is confirmed when you book.
Retail lighting surveys across London and the South East
We survey high street shops, retail parks, shopping centre units and convenience stores across London, Hertfordshire, Essex, Kent, Surrey, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Suffolk and Norfolk. Multi-store retailers can schedule a programme with one report format across the estate. If your store includes offices or a warehouse, see our commercial lux testing and warehouse lux testing pages.
Price
A retail survey of a single floor up to 250 m² starts from £175. A spot check of a single problem area starts from £90, and multi-store programmes are priced on application. All prices are confirmed before booking; see pricing.
Book a retail lighting survey
Tell us the store address, floor area and opening hours, and we will suggest a survey slot outside trading time. Book your shop lux survey.
Frequently asked questions
What lux level does a shop floor need?
BS EN 12464-1:2021 recommends at least 300 lux for retail sales areas and 500 lux at tills and wrapping tables. Many stores light above this for merchandising.
Can you survey the store outside trading hours?
Yes. Most retail surveys are done before opening or after close, so aisles are clear and display lighting can be switched off to check general lighting on its own.
Will a lux survey help with a slip or trip claim?
A dated survey showing measured light levels on stairs, ramps and level changes is useful evidence for insurers and claims handlers, whether taken routinely or after an incident.
Do you measure stockrooms and delivery bays too?
Yes. Back-of-house areas such as stockrooms, cages, goods-in and staff rooms are included, because these are often the worst-lit parts of a store.