HSE Asbestos Campaign Re-Launched

Working with asbestos? Know the risks; check you are up to date with your risk management and business insurance.

Asbestos was used in hundreds of different products and buildings from the 1950’s to the mid 1980’s. Asbestos cement was used up until 1999 in a variety of different premises and materials. Any building that was constructed or had major refurbishment between the 1950’s and mid 80’s is likely to contain some type of asbestos containing material. Use of asbestos peaked in the 60’s and early 70’s – premises built or refurbished during this time are the most likely to contain some form of asbestos.

When asbestos fibres are inhaled they can cause serious diseases which are responsible for around 4000 deaths a year, the single greatest cause of work related deaths in the UK. There are four main diseases caused by asbestos:

• mesothelioma (which is always fatal) 
• lung cancer (almost always fatal) 
• asbestosis (not always fatal, but it can be very debilitating) and  
• diffuse pleural thickening (not fatal).

On 2 November 2009 the HSE re-launch their campaign “Asbestos – The Hidden Killer” and its message is very clear – take asbestos very seriously.

The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006 came into force on 13 November 2006 and affected owners, occupiers, and managers of and those responsible for non-domestic premises. These people are referred to as “the dutyholders”. The regulations require the dutyholders to:

• Manage the risk from asbestos or place a duty on them to co-operate with whoever manages the risk.
• The dutyholder must identify if there is asbestos in the premises, the amount and its condition. (It is to be presumed that materials contain asbestos unless there is strong evidence to the contrary).
• The asbestos risk must be suitably and sufficiently assessed and a management plan prepared detailing how the risk is to be managed.
• All steps needed to put the plan into action must be taken by the dutyholder and the plan and arrangements must be reviewed and monitored.
• Anyone who is liable to work on the asbestos or disturb it must be provided with information on its location, condition and where work with asbestos is being undertaken, the enforcing authority must be notified
• The dutyholder must ensure adequate information, instruction and training is given to employees
• Every dutyholder must prevent exposure to asbestos or reduce it to as low as reasonably practicable and provide adequate personal protective equipment.

In most cases, if you are working with asbestos you will need a licence to do so.

Summing up, any work that may involve exposure to asbestos needs to be very carefully planned and carried out. Penalties for failure can be business threatening with very large fines being imposed by courts.

For more information on risk management and for expert business insurance advice, speak to Alan Boswell Insurance Brokers on 01603 218000, or visit our web site – http://www.alanboswell.com/risk-management/

Taking the Strain

The recent “Fit for Work Europe” report by The Work Foundation, a London based think tank, has found that muscle and joint pain accounts for almost half of all sick leave, both in the UK and across Europe. It concluded 49 per cent of all sick leave is caused by musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs).
The report says an estimated one million people in the UK alone suffer from MSDs that cause them to take time off work, with 9.5 million working days lost each year. It estimates that this costs the UK economy £7bn each year.

Additionally the report found over 40 million workers throughout Europe suffer from chronic musculoskeletal pain costing the European Union economy as much as £219 billion per year.

Stephen Bevan, Managing Director of the Work Foundation, states: "MSDs clearly have a serious, negative impact on the EU workforce, as they were responsible for millions of lost working days”.

Tatiana Quadrello, senior researcher at The Work Foundation, said: 'The Fit for Work study clearly suggests that early intervention is a key factor in allowing people with MSDs to remain in work.”

The Work Foundation's strain injuries report seems to highlight the need for better occupational health and rehabilitation services.

Only two per cent of UK workers have access to comprehensive occupational health services through their employer. A GP referral to a specialist, could take months, by which time the condition could be chronic and could cost a worker their job.

The Work Foundation has now launched a Fit for Work Europe campaign calling for governments and healthcare professionals across Europe to do more to tackle musculoskeletal disorders.

For more information on risk management and for expert business insurance advice, speak to Alan Boswell Insurance Brokers on 01603 218000, or visit our web site – http://www.alanboswell.com/risk-management/

Managing Risk for Work Experience Placements

John Neil, Risk Management Consultant at business insurance specialists Alan Boswell Insurance Brokers, looks at the things businesses need to think about when they take on young people as part of a work experience programme.
It's back to school time and for many year 10 and 11 students this means getting ready for work experience. These workplace visits can be a bit of a health and safety minefield for businesses...
There's a lot to think about when a child arrives at your business premises from a local school for a short period of work experience. All too often young people are involved in accidents and experience shows that they must be carefully managed and supervised whilst on a work experience placement.

One thing you may not realise is there are a few extra health and safety regulations when employing people under the age of 18 and far as health and safety law goes, students on work experience placements are employees.

The main thing to note is you must assess the risks to anyone under 18 years old before they start work experience. You must also tell the young person what these risks are.

There's no need for a new risk assessment every time someone arrives for work experience. A generic assessment covering young workers is fine, so long as it's relevant however the assessments needs to take into account the young people's "psychological or physical immaturity, inexperience, and lack of awareness of existing or potential risks."

Of course, as with all risk assessments, employers have to follow up with some control measures.

The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations include an additional requirement which prohibits the employment of young people where the risk assessment identifies harmful exposure to toxic substances, radiation, extreme cold or heat, vibration, noise, work which is considered beyond their physical or physiological capacity, or work where the risk of accidents will not be recognised by young people, because of their carelessness, lack of experience, training or awareness. There are also some specific prohibitions on the employment of young persons in certain trades or the use of particular plant and machinery.

There is one other regulation worth noting. This applies to children below the minimum school leaving age. Here, parents or carers must be told about the findings of the risk assessment and the control measures being put in place before the child starts work experience.

For more information on risk management and for expert business insurance advice, speak to Alan Boswell Insurance Brokers on 01603 218000, or visit our web site – http://www.alanboswell.com/risk-management/

Driver CPC - What is it all about?

You may have already heard murmurings about The Driver Certificate of Professional Competence (Driver CPC) which is a hot topic at present within the haulage industry. But what does it mean for fleet insurance clients?

Developed as a requirement of the EU Directive 2003/59, the Driver CPC is designed to improve the knowledge and skills of professional LGV and PCV drivers throughout their working life. This in turn should lead to safer driving, subsequently safer roads and, in theory at least, reduced fleet insurance premiums.

The Driver CPC for PCV drivers was implemented on 10th September 2008, and for LGV drivers it will be implemented on 10th September 2009.

• From 10th of September 2009, any newly licenced LGV driver must have a Driver CPC. They get this by passing the Driver CPC theory and practical tests. These are in addition to the tests they must sit to get their LGV driving licence.
  
• Anyone already licenced to drive a goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes before 10th September 2009 does not have to sit the initial Driver CPC tests However, all LGV drivers will have to complete 35 hours of Driver CPC training every five years, or they will no longer be allowed to drive professionally.

So what should hauliers do? It would be advisable to get their drivers trained sooner rather than later because if they leave it too late, they could find there aren't enough approved Driver CPC training centres to cope with demand. As we know haulage companies can't operate without drivers.

Secondly hauliers who begin training immediately will automatically stand out: showing their customers and their fleet insurance provider that they care about the safety of their drivers and other road users.

There is a number of Driver CPC exemptions associated with the Directive. These are listed below:

• Vehicles with a maximum speed not exceeding 45 Kph
• Vehicles used by the armed forces, civil defence, and emergency services
• Vehicles undergoing road tests for technical development, repair or maintenance
• Vehicles used in states of emergency
• Vehicles used in the course of driving lessons or examinations
• Vehicles used for non-commercial carriage of passenger or goods – for personal use
• Vehicles used for carrying material of equipment to be used by the driver in the course of his or her work, providing that driving the vehicles is not the drivers’ principle activity

Ultimately, it is up the driver and their employer to decide if they are covered by these exemptions, and if necessary, justify it to the competent authority.

For more information on fleet insurance and fleet risk management, please visit http://www.alanboswell.com/.

Risk Assessments – Not interesting but very necessary

Revisiting your risk assessments could reduce accidents in the workplace by up to 75% and lead to lower business insurance premiums.

I have always stated that the most important part of any health and safety regime is the correct identification of risk and highlighting methods of control, then documenting this in the form of an easily understood risk assessment that is properly communicated to staff.

When you then pass this message on enthusiasm seems to wane, eyes roll and people seem to lose the will to live. I could talk about how risk assessments lie at the heart of all health and safety legislation and practice or about how they are a legal requirement, but instead to highlight their importance I will share with you some details of research from a major UK insurer.

Aviva took a detailed look at around 7,500 employers' liability insurance claims - incidents where someone was killed or injured at work.

In particular they wanted to know what was behind most of these cases. The thing most employers hadn't done to stop these incidents happening was “failure to carry out a proper risk assessment." This finding was attributed to 38% of all business insurance liability claims.

The next two most common failings after risk assessments were "lack of training" - found in 27% of cases - and "poor housekeeping" – found in 11% of cases.

So as you can see, despite the apparent lack of interest the words risk assessment conjure up, they are very important.

When next asked what's really important when it comes to health and safety, I'm going to say "risk assessment, training and housekeeping".

Because by Aviva’s reckoning that should cover just over three-quarters of all incidents where someone ends up losing their life or suffering an injury at work.

So probably the best piece of health and safety advice anyone can give is make sure you do your risk assessments.

For more information and advice on business insurance and risk management, please visit: http://www.alanboswell.com/business_insurance/

U K Fire Losses hit 1.3 billion

The cost of fire damage in the UK was a record £1.3bn, according to new figures from the Association of British Insurers (ABI). Commercial business insurance fire damage cost £865m, up 15% on the previous year and fire damage to homes cost £408m, up 17% on the previous year.

School fires alone cost £33m with there being at least 1 serious school fire per month.

There has been a particular increase in what are termed large loss fires (those over £500,000) and the ABI says it is researching the causes of this increase. While it says that both fraudulent arson and arson generally are factors it is not ruling out other factors such as modern materials used in construction.

The ABI have expressed serious concern over the figures stating they highlight the importance of risk management, fire insurance, and reducing and managing the fire risk.

Meanwhile the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order has just received its first official review from the Communities and Local Government department.

The general picture from this early snapshot from both enforcers and responsible persons is that the Order is bedding in well and there are many positives to take from this. The report states that all parties tend to think that the risk assessment approach is the correct one and are embracing it to a greater or lesser degree.

But the report concedes there are some areas which could benefit from further action. These include:

• raising awareness of the requirements of the Order
• consideration of more tailored advice to ‘responsible persons’
• clarification of who a ‘responsible person’ is
• clarification of who may have an appropriate level of fire safety expertise to assist with delivering compliance with the order
• ensuring fire and rescue authorities continue to take a supportive and educational approach to compliance

For more information on risk management and fire regulations, please visit http://www.alanboswell.com/

Publicans urged to review overheads as recession bites

With recent reports showing that pubs are closing their doors at the alarming rate of 39 per week, there has never been a better time for publicans to review their overheads with a view to improving profitability. The double whammy of falling sales and rising costs might seem insurmountable for hard-pressed publicans. But research shows that there’s still much that pubs can do to ensure survival in times of recession.

Attracting new customers and increasing sales is obviously important. But reducing overheads is perhaps a quicker and easier way to have an impact on the bottom line. A recent survey of 2,675 pubs by the Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers (ALMR) indicated that they spend an average of 53% of turnover on controllable costs. About 27% goes on wages and 11% on premises, excluding rent.

Publicans should take a hard look at where the money goes and see if they are getting good value. The good news is that savings are there to be had. For example, data from pub insurance specialists Alan Boswell Group has shown that pub insurance premiums have dropped by about 8.5% in the past two years. According to the broker, the average premium paid by pubs it insures is now around £1,050. That figure is about 30% lower than it was in 2005.

Jon Preston, who deals with our pub insurance scheme, commented, “There are more insurers fighting for a reducing number of pubs, and the competition in the market is more intense than ever. Publicans with a good track record and a decent claims record can expect to save money if they shop around.”

Publicans should not be tempted to skimp on insurance cover. It’s important to get the balance right; saving money simply by cutting down on your protection is a risky approach. Getting the wrong cover for your pub, or using an insurer with poor claims handling processes could finish off a business that’s been weakened by the poor economic climate. As ever, getting independent advice from a broker seems like the best route. The busy publican can effectively out-source the insurance procurement process to their insurance broker.