A handrail friction checking device comprises a handrail gripper for gripping the handrail and movable together with the handrail, a spring with one end of the spring being fixed and the other end being connected to the handrail gripper so that the spring can apply a spring force which is opposed to the direction of handrail movement to the handrail gripper when the handrail gripper moves along with the handrail and a sensor which is disposed in a way that it is distanced from the handrail gripper and can be triggered by the handrail gripper when the handrail gripper moves along with the handrail.