Many of you still may not realise but the main enforcing authority for health and safety in the UK, the HSE, are no longer funded by central government. As of 2012 the government introduced new legislation enabling the HSE to recover their costs in relation to enforcement and investigation of ‘material breaches’ of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 as they and the HSE believe it to be unfair for UK taxpayer money to be spent on these endeavours on behalf of companies that effectively are acting in a criminal way by breaking the law. When first introduced the fee was set at £124 per hour for all billable HSE work, this has recently been increased to £129 per hour under the same criteria.
When coupled with the potential reputational damage to a company, the possible down time due to enforcement notices being in place, potential prosecution fees and fines all stemming from a failure of health and safety management this poses yet another sound commercial reason to be extremely proactive and implement good health and safety standards within your organisation to avoid these potentially crippling financial outcomes.
http://www.hse.gov.uk/fee-for-intervention/
Further Information can be found using the link above and in the HSE information leaflet HSE48 or for more advice on how this may relate to you or for assistance to bring your company back to legal compliance please call Lighthouse safety training on 01634 260631.
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