How does the Health and Safety at Work Act of 1974 protect injury claimants?
The How does the Health and Safety at Work Act of 1974 protect injury claimants? protects employees, and members of the public, from sustaining injury caused by work related activities. The Act provides a legal framework which encourages and enforces high standards of workplace health and safety practice.
See also:
Duties under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974
The duty to comply with the Act applies to everyone involved in workplace activity, such as:
- Employers
- Employees
- Manufacturers, suppliers and importers of workplace equipment
Failure to comply with relevant legislation under the Act may result in legal action.
What are employer's duties and responsibilities?
The Act places a duty of care on employers to 'ensure so far as is reasonably practicable the health, safety and welfare at work of all their employees'. Employers have ‘strict liability' for personal injury in the workplace caused by a failure to do so.
In practice, employers must provide their employees with:
- Adequately maintained safety equipment and safe work processes
- Safe storage facilities for workplace materials, safe handling, usage and transport practices for these materials
- Health and safety training, information and supervision
- A safe workplace environment
- Written safety policies and risk assessments
Under the Act, an employer cannot charge employees for:
- Costs of implementing health and safety measures
- Costs of providing essential health and safety equipment
Employers also have a duty to ensure the safety of non-employees. This duty can apply to persons such as visitors to an employer's premises, or members of the public affected by an employer's work related actions.
What are employee's duties and responsibilities?
The Act places specific responsibilities on employees in the workplace. Employees must:
- Take responsibility for their health and safety, and that of other persons
- Comply with workplace safety practices and complete safety training
- Leave in place health and safety related items provided by the employer
Failure of employees to take reasonable steps to ensure health and safety in the workplace may result in legal action.
How is health and safety legislation enforced?
Health and Safety inspectors have considerable powers in the workplace, such as the right to:
- Enter premises without making an appointment
- Investigate and examine premises and equipment
- Take equipment or substances away for investigation
- Employ assistance from colleagues or Police officers
- Ask questions under caution
- Seize imminently dangerous items or substances
Health and Safety Executive Officers carry out inspections of larger businesses, such as manufacturing plants and large industrial sites. Local Authority Environmental Health Officers carry out inspections of smaller business types.
What action can be taken if health and safety legislation is breached?
Legal Notices can be issued requiring that something must be done, or ceased.
- Improvement Notices detail what is currently wrong. These Notices also provide advice on how to remedy this, within a set time limit
- Prohibition Notices impose immediate action. These Notices prohibit the use of unsafe equipment, or the continuation of unsafe working practices
Prosecution can be brought against both employers and employees. Penalties for health and safety breaches can be:
- A maximum fine of £5,000 - in Magistrate's Court
- An unlimited fine and jail - in Crown Court
The penalty imposed by the Court will be commensurate with the severity of the breach and any personal injury caused.
Read more:
Work accident compensation claims
Employers' liability claims claims
Work accident claims are also known as employers' liability claims. Click on the icons below for more information:
How we can help you with your work accident claim
Your solicitor will fight for the best possible compensation settlement for you, and the highly-experienced panel of solicitors have an excellent track record of winning work accident claims.
- FREE
consultation - Find out
if you can claim - No obligation
to start a claim
If you have any questions, or would like to start a No Win No Fee work accident claim, we are open:
Mon-Fri 8am-9pm, Sat 9am-6pm, Sun 9:30am-5pm
Call us for FREE advice on 0800 376 1001, or arrange a call back from a friendly, legally-trained advisor:
Questions about work accident claims?
Get all the answers in our comprehensive FAQ section:
- How will a personal injury claim affect my benefits?
- Will I have to pay tax on my injury compensation award?
- Can I claim for an injury if there's no accident book record?
- Can I claim injury compensation if my employer went bust?
- Can I claim injury compensation if there were no witnesses?
- Can I claim for an injury if partly to blame for an accident?
- Could a work injury claim stop me getting another job?
Author:
Chris Salmon, Director
About the author
Chris Salmon is a co-founder and Director of Quittance Legal Services. Chris has played key roles in the shaping and scaling of a number of legal services brands and is a regular commentator in the legal press.