Health and Safety Flashcards
(28 cards)
1
Q
1) What is the purpose of RICS Surveying Safely Guidance Note 2018?
A
- Effective from Feb 2019
- Sets out basic, good practice principles for management of health and safety for RICS regulated firms and RICS members
- For those engaged in built environment as property professionals
- Includes health and safety responsibilities at corporate level and level of individual RICS member
- It sets out the ‘Safe Person Concept’ – RICS considers concept of ‘safe person’ to mean that each individual assumes individual behavioural responsibility for their own, their colleagues’ and others’ health and safety while at work
2
Q
2) How is Survey Safely structured?
A
1) Personal responsibilities for RICS members and firms
2) Assessing hazards and risk
3) Workplace health and safety
4) Occupational hygiene and health
5) Visiting premises and sites
6) Fire safety
7) Residential property surveying
8) Procurement and management of contractors
3
Q
3) What is the key advice set out in Surveying Safely?
A
- RICS regulated firms must ensure they provide:
o Safe working environment
o Safe work equipment
o Competent staff - Concept of ‘safe person’
- Seeks to ensure individuals accept responsibility for own actions and have tools they need to do job safely
- Employer’s liability insurance and public liability insurance
- Legal considerations and duties for employers and employees
o Health and Safety at Work Act 1974
o Equality Act 2010
o Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 - Advice on health, well-being and mental health
- Updated advice on fire safety
- Audit template provided to assist members
- Assessing hazards and risks
4
Q
4) What does Surveying Safely recommend when visiting a site?
A
- Tell someone where you are going and when and when you expect to be back
- Tell someone when you leave the building / site
- Wear appropriate protective clothing such as a high visibility jacket, steel toe capped boots, hard hat, goggles, gloves, ear defenders
- Sign in or out of a building construction site and make sure you receive an induction. Do not just enter.
- Consider whether safe to inspect alone and observe special lone working arrangements
- Check dated tag if going on scaffolding
- Wear non-slip protective shoes
5
Q
5) Can you name a significant health & safety incident and what the RICS has advised following it?
A
- The Grenfell Tower fire June 2017
- RICS working with other bodies to provide advice and support for Government and professionals following tragedy
- Has advised members of the importance of owners, landlords and managers having robust fire assessments for their properties and issued advice to surveyors from July 2017 onwards
- RICS issued guidance eon existing high-rise buildings’ fire safety in Oct 2017 and there is other info regularly being updated on RICS website regarding such issues as ban on high rise combustible cladding
6
Q
6) What is the relevant Health & Safety legislation?
A
- Health and Safety at Work Act 1974
- ‘Duty of every employer to ensure, so far as reasonably practical, the health, safety and welfare at work of all employees’
- Policed by Health and Safety Executive (HSE) as a criminal offence – with fines and / or imprisonment
- Must report injuries and dangerous occurrences
- A hazard refers to anything which has potential to cause harm (such as wet floor)
- The probability / likelihood that someone will be harmed is called a risk (such as the risk of falling over on the wet floor)
- Detailed H&S info to be held on site, usually in operations or maintenance manual
7
Q
7) What is a risk assessment?
A
- It is a legal requirement for organisations employing more than 5 staff to carry out documented H&S risk assessments of all their significant hazards. A risk assessment is therefore a mandatory assessment of all the potential risks and hazards within the work premises.
8
Q
8) What are the steps of a risk assessment?
A
1) Identify the hazards present
2) Identify all those with potential of being harmed / at risk from the hazard
3) Evaluate the risk, considering likelihood and severity of any accidents. Existing controls in place should be identified and evaluated.
4) Record findings on suitable form
5) Review the risk assessment regularly
9
Q
9) What is a method statement?
A
- Document that details way in which a work task or process is to be completed to be prior approved
- Should outline hazards involved and include step by step guide on how to do job safely
- Must also detail which control measures have been introduced to ensure safety of anyone who is affected by task or process
10
Q
10) What do we mean by public liability insurance?
A
- Covers cost of claims made by members of the public for incidents that occur in connection with your business activities
- Copy of contractor’s all risks and public liability insurance also needed before work is commenced
11
Q
11) How should a Health & Safety policy document be prepared?
A
CORI
- Required for all employers who employee 5 or more employees
- Written document which must contain the following 4 points:
o Policy setting out firms’ Commitment to Health and Safety
o Details of Organisation’s H&S structure, with roles and responsibilities for organising H&S
o Risk assessment setting out risks within workplace and preventative measures in place
o Details of planning, Implementation of the H&S policy and control measures
12
Q
12) What is the ‘six-pack’ of H&S regulations?
A
- Group of 6 regulations introduced in 1993, popularly known as the ‘six-pack’
- Cover various key aspects of H&S compliance
- These regulations implement various European directives on H&S and clarify how employers must comply with their duties under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974
- The regulations are:
o Management of Health & Safety at work
o Display screen equipment
o Manual Handling Operations
o Personal Protective Equipment at work
o Provision and use of work equipment
o Workplace health, safety and welfare
13
Q
13) What is the legislation in relation to fire risk?
A
- Fire Risk Management Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005
- Based on risk assessment with emphasis on fire prevention
- Applies to non-domestic property in England and Wales
- The ‘responsible person’ is the employer, or occupier, who controls the property, or if property vacant, the owner
- Must be fire precautions in place following risk assessment
- Need for good record keeping in relation to risk assessment, fire policy and procedures and staff training
- Regular review of assessments required and recorded
- Reasonable fire precaution measures could include:
o Fire detection and warning alarm
o Fire-fighting equipment
o Safe exit routes
o Personnel emergency evacuation plan
o Emergency lighting and signage
o Suitable fire exit doors
14
Q
14) What is the requirement in relation to reporting injuries?
A
- Relevant legislation is Reporting of Injuries, Diseases, and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995 (Riddor)
- Trigger date for reporting injuries is over 7 days incapacitation
- Such an injury must be reported to HSE within 15 days from date of accident
- All employers must also keep a record of all 3-day plus injuries
- This info can be kept in accident book which must be kept for min. 3 years after occupational accident or injury
15
Q
15) What if a breach of a duty of care by a corporate body leads to death?
A
- Would depend on the circumstances and I would need more facts on the incident, however it could be punishable under the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007
- Penalties range from an unlimited fine, imprisonment and disqualification as corporate director by member of ‘senior management team’
16
Q
16) What liability do occupiers owe to visitors of their premises?
A
- Occupier’s Liability Act 1957
- Act regulates liability of occupiers and others for injuries caused to lawful visitors, as well as a damage caused to any goods, as a result of ‘dangers due to the state of the property or (due) to things done or omitted to be done there’.
- Common duty of care is imposed to lawful visitors
- Not only occupiers who may be liable to lawful visitors, but also those who have control over premises, such as landlords
- Duty of those who are in occupation or control of premises is to ‘take such care as in all the circumstances of the case is reasonable to see that the visitor will be reasonably safe in using the premises for the purposes for which he is invited or permitted by the occupier to be there’
- Trespassers are covered by Occupiers’ Liability Act 1984
- This is why companies need to ensure they have appropriate Public Liability Insurance cover
17
Q
17) What is Asbestos?
A
- Asbestos is an insulating material which can cause serious health problems and fatal diseases
- Left undamaged or undisturbed, it poses no risk to health
- However once disturbed or damaged can release very small toxic fibres which can lodge on the lungs and cause illnesses
- HSE estimates that over 4 million UK properties contain asbestos and cause 5,000 deaths annually
- 3 most common types of asbestos are:
o White (Chrysotile)
o Brown (Amosite)
o Blue (Crocidolite) - White asbestos has been illegal in UK since 1999, the other forms were banned in 1985
- Was used frequently in construction projects throughout 1960s and 1970s
18
Q
18) What is the key legislation in relation to asbestos?
A
- Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012
- Statutory duty to manage existing asbestos in commercial buildings
- Non-compliance is criminal offence
- 2 separate obligations – ‘duty holder’ and an ‘employer’
- Duty holder is owner of premises if vacant or tenant if holding a repairing lease
- Purpose of survey is to make a ‘materials assessment’
- Non-licensed work with asbestos needs to be notified to HSE
- Brief written records should be kept for notifiable non-licensed work
19
Q
19) What are the approaches in managing asbestos?
A
- Two types of asbestos survey:
o Management survey – to locate and assess it and advise on its management during normal occupation and use of premises. No sampling or analysis of material taken.
o Refurbishment / demolition survey – required where premises or part of it need upgrading, refurbished or demolished. Samples of materials suspected of containing asbestos are taken and analysed.
o Recommendations made regarding their management. - Duty holder must undertake risk assessment – express obligation to manage risk and written plan prepared and implementation & reviews recorded
- All work undertaken must be done by licensed contractor
- Asbestos register must be produced and regularly updated
- Newly constructed building requires architect’s certificate to confirm that there is no asbestos in the building
20
Q
20) What are the steps to take in identify / dealing with asbestos?
A
1) Duty holder must assess whether premises contains asbestos, and if so, where it is and what condition it is in. If in doubt, materials must be presumed to contain asbestos.
2) Assess the risk and produce a plan to manage the asbestos – do any areas need encapsulation or removed?
3) Produce asbestos register
4) Make register available to all relevant parties who might disturb it
5) Review register regularly (HSE recommend 6 monthly)
21
Q
21) What is the defence for a claim arising in relation to asbestos?
A
- Health and Safety Offences Act 2008
- Significantly changed penalty for breach of the 2006 regulations by raising max. fines to £20,000 and introducing possibility of 12 month imprisonment for many offences
- Enables more serious offences to be tried in higher courts where no limit on fines to be imposed
22
Q
22) What are the penalties for not managing asbestos properly?
A
- Health and Safety Offences Act 2008
- Significantly changed penalty for breach of the 2006 regulations by raising max. fines to £20,000 and introducing possibility of 12 month imprisonment for many offences
- Enables more serious offences to be tried in higher courts where no limit on fines to be imposed
23
Q
23) What is the Disability Discrimination and Equality Act 2010?
A
- Equality Act 2010 came into force in Oct 2010 to consolidate existing discrimination law and provide broader protection to wider range of discrimination and inequality to include use of property
- Obligations of service providers extended to all controllers of let premises
- Unlawful for those managing buildings to discriminate against or victimise occupier
- All instructions must be undertaken in a way which does not discriminate
- Must make reasonable adjustments to aid disabled people if placed at substantial disadvantage if work not done
- Service providers have duty to make alterations or make alternative provision of service
- Must be reasonable – reference to cost, extent and disruption
- When faced with an obstacle to access for disabled persons, Act gives service provider following options:
o Remove feature
o Alter it
o Provide reasonable means of avoiding obstacle
o Provide reasonable alternative access - Test is one of reasonableness and not an absolute obligation
- Tests for reasonable will include considering effectiveness, practicality, and financial cost
24
Q
24) What are the regulations relating to smoking in buildings?
A
- Smoke-free (Premises and Enforcement) Regulations 2007
- Illegal to smoke in all enclosed and substantially enclosed places
- No smoking signs must be displayed
- Local authorities enforce law
- Penalties = Fines
25
25) What are the Construction (Design & Management) CDM regulations 2015?
- Criminal offence policed by HSE
- Health & safety during design and management of all commercial building projects
- Aim is to improve overall management and co-ordination of H&S at all stages of construction project
- HSE to be notified in F10 form if project lasts longer than 30 construction days with 20+ workers working simultaneously
- CDM file must be maintained during construction and passed onto occupier / owner of building, containing all aspects of H&S info relating to building
- HSE can issue improvement and prohibition notices if regs breached
26
26) What are the key statutory obligations of a commercial property owner?
- Asbestos management
- Contamination
- Discrimination and equality
- EPC’s
- Fire safety
- Health & Safety
- Occupiers liability
- PAT testing for portable electrical equipment
- Waste management
27
Fire Safety Act 2021 reforms Fire Order 2005
- Based on the Hackitt review, requires all responsible persons to assess / manage fire risk
- Lift / evacuation plan / do the residents know the plan
28
Building Safety Bill
- Building Safety of a high-rise bill, and the use EWS1 form required.
- Residents have a stronger voice / accountability and enforcement
