Health and safety industry news

New and changing legislation

Evidence of Insurance
The requirement to display a certificate of employers’ liability insurance has been amended, as part of the Department for Work and Pensions’ (DWP) campaign to reduce administrative burdens. From October, it has been acceptable to display an electronic version if it is readily accessible to every employee.

Also gone is the duty to retain certificates for 40 years. This was introduced in 1999 to help claimants where there was a delay between exposure and disease, for example with asbestos-related illnesses which can have a latency period of decades. DWP found that the existing rules were not being effectively enforced by the Health and Safety Executive, and the cost to businesses of keeping certificates was not justified.

Higher penalties
The Health and Safety (Offences) Act 2008 comes into force on 16 January 2009. The new legislation extends the range and severity of punishments available to the courts. The current £5,000 maximum fine in a Magistrates’ Court will rise to £20,000 for all regulatory offences. Magistrates will also be able to hand down terms of imprisonment of up to 12 months rather than the current six-month term. Crown Courts can jail miscreants for up to two years and/or order an unlimited fine. Custodial sentences have hitherto been limited to offences that resulted in death or major injury coupled with the employer’s gross negligence, but future sentencing will not be limited to these.

Judith Hackitt, chair of the Health and Safety Executive, said “The new Act sends out an important message to those who flout the law. However, good employers and good managers have nothing to fear. There are no changes to existing legal duties and important safeguards are in place to ensure these new powers will be used sensibly and proportionately. Our enforcement policy targets those who cut corners, gain commercial advantage over competitors by failing to comply with the law and who put workers and the public at risk.”

Form filling
There is draft legislation to do away with various requirements for employers to provide information. On the list is form OSR1, the notification document meant to be sent to the enforcement authority as soon as new business premises become operational. Another proposal is to redesign the statutory health and safety law poster displayed at each premises so that the employer doesn’t have to add details of the enforcing authority etc. If these amendments come to pass, we will notify clients via this newsletter in due course.

New and changing publications

New standard on fire safety
A new British Standard, BS 9999:2008, has been published. It gives recommendations and advice on the design, management and use of non-domestic premises for the purposes of fire safety. All sections of the previous standard, BS 5588, are superseded, except BS 5588 part 1 which deals with residential premises.

The new standard covers fire prevention measures, awareness of the needs of all building users including disabled staff or visitors, maintaining fire safety measures including a safe means of escape, staff training, and taking charge in the event of a fire whilst awaiting the emergency services. BS 9999:2008 “Code of Practice for Fire Safety in the Design, Management and Use of Buildings” is available from BSI Sales (tel: 020 8996 9001) at a cost of £290 (no VAT).

Subscribers to a PHSC plc Group member’s Appointed Safety Advisor Service can obtain a 35% discount by ordering directly from PHSC on 01622 717700.

Guidance on worker involvement
A new booklet has been published by HSE Books, aimed mainly at medium and large employers, to offer advice on consultation and involvement with employees on health and safety matters. There are some case studies that may be of interest to organisations of every size.

Entitled “Involving your workforce in health and safety: good practice for all workplaces”, the 30-page document is priced at £10.95. It is available from HSE Books (tel: 01787 881165) and other booksellers, quoting reference HSG 263, or ISBN 9780717662272.

Industry news

Accident numbers reducing but no room for complacency
Figures released by the Health and Safety Executive show a decrease in workplace fatalities and injuries during 2007/08. Some of the statistics are as follows:

• 229 deaths at work
• 34 million days lost due to injury or ill-health
• 2.1 million people with work
  related illnesses
• 136,000 workers with injuries such as amputations, burns or fractures

The number of prosecutions in the period has also been disclosed. Of the 1,382 offences brought to court, HSE took 1,028 and the remaining 354 were brought by local authorities.

Cutty Sark sunk by vacuum cleaner
A joint investigation by the London Fire Brigade and the Metropolitan Police has concluded that the fire in May 2007 that devastated the Cutty Sark was caused by a vacuum cleaner which overheated after being left running all weekend. The blaze happened during restoration work and caused £10m of damage to the ship. CCTV and forensic evidence suggests that an industrial cleaning appliance was still switched on when workers left for the weekend at the end of their Friday shift.

The vacuum cleaner overheated, and this caused the fire to break out before dawn on Monday. It should have been spotted during routine patrols, but security guards falsified their log books and had been sleeping or reading when they were meant to be checking the vessel. There was no evidence of arson and the incident is being attributed to a combination of human errors and bad practices.

In the courts

Stress award upheld
Telephone company O2 were unsuccessful when they appealed against an order to pay £110,000 compensation for psychiatric illness brought on by workplace stress. The claimant, Susan Dickens, had progressed to a role as Regulatory Finance Manager but pressure of work became so intense that she couldn’t cope.

In the original judgment at Oxford County Court, the judge said that her employers would reasonably have been expected to foresee the illness, but O2 felt that they shouldn’t be held liable. The Court of Appeal rejected O2’s contention that their conduct had not led to the illness, and that they had no prior warning signs that Ms Dickens was suffering as a result of work demands. Ms Dickens said that she had previously warned management that the pressure was excessive but they did nothing to assist.

Jail term for driver after fatal coach crash
Oxford Crown Court sentenced Philip Rooney, a 49-year-old National Express driver, to five years imprisonment for causing a crash that killed three people and injured scores more. The case relates to an Aberdeen-bound coach that overturned on the M4/M25 slip road near Heathrow last year. Rooney, who was also ordered to take an extended driving test when he is released, had been driving at 55mph around a 40mph bend and was making an announcement on the public address system at the same time.

Retailer failed to assess risks
Warwick District Council took proceedings against clothing outlet River Island after a member of staff suffered a head injury when changing a window display. The accident happened because management had failed to assess the risks associated with accessing the area, which was reached via trap doors. The prosecution resulted in fines and costs totalling £11,000.

Asbestos surveyors fined for shoddy work
Normandie Analytical Services had to pay fines and costs of £39,000 after their inadequate survey led to people being put at risk from exposure to white asbestos. The company had been commissioned to identify asbestos at Cardinal Newman School in Pontypridd, but they wrongly assumed that the insulation board used for ceiling tiles did not contain asbestos. The error came to light when builders unintentionally disturbed the material during works last year.

An HSE spokesman emphasised that “asbestos surveys need to be accurate, thorough and comprehensive, so that asbestos in buildings can be properly managed. Exposure can only be prevented if the location of the material is known”.

Two companies penalised after elderly resident injured
An 81-year-old woman fell through a hatch in her hallway, left open by a contractor who was installing an oil-fired central heating system as part of the Scottish Government Central Heating Programme. British Gas Services were managing the programme. The hatch was left open while work was going on elsewhere in the property, but the woman walked into the hallway to go to her front door and fell down. A Health and Safety Executive spokesman said that this was the fourth accident involving elderly women falling down hatches or holes left exposed and unprotected where a contractor carried out plumbing, heating or gas replacement work in their properties.

British Gas was fined £2,000 at Perth Sheriff Court, and ordered to pay compensation of £2,700. Adrian Newth, trading as Perthshire Oil Heating, was ordered to pay £300 in compensation. Both admitted charges under section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act.

PHSC Group news

New company joins PHSC Group
PHSC plc recently announced that it had completed the acquisition of Inspection Services (UK) Limited. The company specialises in the examination of plant and equipment such as lifts and compressors. They offer inspection and certification services throughout the UK, enabling organisations to comply with statutory and non-statutory obligations.

Originally formed in 1992, the company derives much of its work from a network of insurance brokers and enjoys a very high level of repeat business. For more information, visit www.safeinspect.co.uk or call Clare Cohen on 01622 715353.

Compliments of the season
We extend seasonal greetings to all PHSC plc Group clients, and wish you a safe, healthy and prosperous New Year. Rather than send out cards to all our customers, we are again making a donation to Canterbury Oast Trust. This is a charity supporting people with learning disabilities. It creates opportunities for those who would not be able to look after themselves outside a safe and supportive environment. To read more about the excellent work of this organisation, go to www.c-o-t.org.uk

Staff profile
Clare Cohen
Clare is the Company Administrator for the new PHSC plc subsidiary, Inspection Services (UK) Limited. The job involves daily contact with insurance brokers and direct clients. In addition to providing quotations, Clare has to make sure that inspection reports are prepared accurately and issued in timely fashion. A key task is the scheduling of work for the field engineers, ensuring that clients are visited at the appropriate frequency. Clare has a very busy role dealing with all aspects of the company from start to finish. She is looking forward to exciting times ahead as the company progresses, and is keen to be part of a successful and growing team.

And finally...

Mobile phone hazards
Everyone knows there are risks from using a phone when driving, but now a tale from France illustrates that taking your mobile on other forms of transport can be unexpectedly hazardous too. The story concerns a passenger on a high-speed TGV train travelling between La Rochelle and Paris, who went to answer the call of nature. Unfortunately his phone slipped out of his pocket as he leant over the toilet, falling into the bowl.

Reaching down to try and retrieve the device, the man’s arm activated the automatic suction system on the on-board toilet, and became jammed. Witnesses reported that the train was stopped for two hours while the emergency services attended the scene. Unable to free the man, fire crews cut through the pipe work and carted him off to hospital on a stretcher with the toilet still attached to his arm.