£124-an-hour HSE charging regime set to kick in

The Health and Safety Executive’s new charging regime - designed to fund enforcement action in the face of a 35% budget cut – is set to come into force on Monday.

Delayed from its target launch date of April, the “Fee for Intervention” scheme will see contractors charged £124-an-hour for visits from inspectors where they are found to have contravened health and safety law. The change comes into effect from 1 October.

Earlier this year, HSE programme director Gordon MacDonald told Building he believed it was right for those who broke the law to pay their fair share of the costs.

“Firms who manage workplace risks properly will not pay,” he said.

Chris Hall, managing director of health and safety consultancy Lighthouse Risk Services said that while there was clarity on the circumstances in which the charging regime would apply, firms would struggle to gauge the full extent of the costs they were likely to be exposed to.

“What is clear is that businesses who want to protect their position and minimise charges should speak to a health and safety consultant today as the prevention is 500% cheaper than the cure,” he said.

For more details on the Fee for Intervention scheme, click here.