New Health & Safety sentencing guidelines
On February 1st 2016, new Health & Safety sentencing guidelines for England and Wales were put into place. These guidelines cover Health & Safety, corporate manslaughter, food safety and hygiene cases.
The penalties have been categorized depending on the size of the businesses.
|
Size of Organisation |
Maximum Fine? |
Turnover |
| Large Organisations | Up to £10million | Turnover of £50million or more |
| Medium Organisations | Up to £4million | Turnover between £10-50million |
| Small Organisations | Up to £1.6million | Turnover between £2-10million |
| Microbusinesses | Up to £450,000.00 | Turnover less than £2million. |
Directors of businesses that are found guilty of consent, convenience or neglect, as an individual, are potentially subject to unlimited fines and up to two years imprisonment.
Top tips from Citation to avoid Health & Safety fines
- Review what Health & Safety policies and procedures you currently have in place and ensure they are completely up-to-date
- Make sure you have suitable and sufficient Risk Assessments in place and that these are communicated, followed and enforced
- Carry out internal audits in detail to make sure all procedures are followed
Head of Health & Safety at Citation, Alastair Hall says: “The goal of these guidelines is to ensure a safe and healthy workforce. Audits must be fit for purpose and not simply a box-ticking exercise. Investigation of incidents must be thorough. Boards must ensure that health and safety is firmly embedded into the organization and that this is not just a function of the Health & Safety team.”
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