Average bearing pressure is a screen, not a design
Dividing a vertical load by the pad area gives the average pressure. 400 kN on a 1.5 m square pad is 178 kN/m². That number can be compared with a stated allowable pressure from a ground investigation. It cannot produce one.
What BS EN 1997 still requires
Bearing resistance, sliding, settlement and the effect of an eccentric or inclined load. Groundwater. The difference between an undrained and a drained check. Partial factors. None of those are on the calculator.
If the load is not in the middle of the pad, the average is the wrong picture: one edge unloads, the other rises. The tool refuses that case by ignoring it. Do not use the result as if eccentricity had been checked.
Open the pad pressure calculator. Official method stays in BS EN 1997 and the ground investigation report.
Last checked 2 October 2026. Original guidance. Standards text stays with the publisher.