Lord Young recommends quick and easy DIY risk analysis for SMEs

In a bid to reduce the burden of health and safety regulations on small and medium sized businesses, firms will be able to complete 15 minute questionnaires, which will be valid as risk analysis for non-hazardous workplaces.

Lord Young of Graffham, the Prime Minister's Adviser on Health and Safety Law and Practice, announced the measure as part of his Common Sense, Common Safety report which was published today.

The Health and Safety Executive will create the simplified, interactive risk assessment forms which companies will be able to access online.

Lord Young said he wants the insurance industry to accept the simplified forms as evidence of compliance.

He added that insurance companies should cease the current practice that requires businesses operating in low hazard environments to employ health and safety consultants to carry out full health and safety risk assessments.

“Small businesses engaged in non-hazardous activities live in fear of a litigious compensation culture and the only protection they have is their accident insurance policy,” said Lord Young.

“So to protect themselves, SMEs have hired and slavishly followed health & safety consultants, many of whom are unqualified. Consultants are not needed for the analysis of non-hazardous workplaces.”

Furthermore, Lord Young has recommended professionalising health and safety consultants with a qualification requirement that all consultants should be accredited to professional bodies.

Lord Young intends the HSE to take the lead in establishing the validation body for qualifications, working with the relevant sector and professional bodies. However, this function should be run by the professional bodies as soon as possible.

Where health and safety consultants are employed to carry out full health and safety risk assessments, only qualified consultants who are included on the web based directory should be used.

At the same time, Lord Young called for restrictions on advertising for “no win, no fee” compensation claims and a revolution in the way personal injury claims are handled.

The Prime Minister and the Cabinet have accepted all of the recommendations put forward by Lord Young, who will continue to work across departments to ensure his recommendations are carried through.

“For too long, health and safety has been allowed to become a joke in the media and among the public. It's about time it was taken seriously. I believe that the best way to do this is to ease the burden in places where health and safety is not an issue, and to discourage the compensation culture that has spread fear of litigation throughout our society,” said Lord Young.

“I believe my recommendations will be an important step towards restoring civil liberties, shredding red tape and making sure that health and safety rules are properly applied and respected. I am grateful to the Prime Minister for asking me to undertake this important work, and I am pleased that he has accepted all of my suggestions.”