What is the difference between a tagout and a lockout?

• A. Tagout physically prevents energy sources from being energized
• B. Lockout is just a label and does not physically prevent energizing
• C. Lockout physically prevents energy sources from being energized
• D. Tagout and lockout are identical in effect

Answer: (C)

Lockout and tagout differ in whether energy is physically blocked or only warned about. Lockout uses a locking device on the energy source (like valves, switches, or disconnects) with a key, so the equipment cannot be energized until the lock is removed by the person who applied it. Tagout places a warning tag on the device, indicating it should not be operated, but it does not stop energizing by itself. That’s why lockout physically prevents energizing, while tagout does not. The other ideas—tagout stopping energizing, or lockout being only a label, or them being identical—aren’t accurate.