The Worlds Gone Mad

We have all heard about councils saying children must wear safety goggles if they

are playing conkers (Conkers Bonkers) and other ridiculous stories that make us think we are living in a Nanny State. However it is often the same people that ridicule these stories that are the first to put in a claim for compensation when they have an accident.

As a management company responsible for the common parts of the building, we must strike a balance between managing safety to a reasonable level and wrapping people up in

cotton wool. The legal requirement is to ensure peoples safety so far as is reasonably practicable.

The law requires risk assessments to be made on the common parts of residential buildings as these are considered to be workplaces, whether you employ someone or not. These risk assessments should identify any hazards (e.g. a loose handrail, an unguarded lift motor, an asbestos ceiling), evaluate the risk and recommend what actions should be taken to control this risk. These actions should be consummate to the level of risk. In other words if the risk is high we should be putting a lot of time, trouble, effort and money into controlling the risk and if the risk is insignificant we can ignore it. Risk assessment is a way of ensuring that we are targeting our resources where they are most needed.

The recent fire in the block of flats in Camberwell which killed 6 people could have been either prevented or the severity of the outcome minimised had a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment been carried out and the recommendations implemented.

In addition to the criminal legal requirements (it is a criminal offence not to carry out a risk assessment) there are also the civil legal issues. Adverts are all around us (particularly in the Accident and Emergency waiting room) telling us that if we have an accident that was not our fault then we may be entitled to compensation. We can guard against this by carrying out risk assessments and not only minimising the risk but demonstrating how we have managed health and safety to a reasonable level.

David Wilson

Chartered Health and Safety Advisor

Worksafe Solutions

by: Crabtree Property Management

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