If a Health and Safety Inspector makes a routine visit to your workplace they
... In fact, they have the power to do anything they need to do.
The health and safety inspector may enter your work premises at any time. Remember that work premises can include the homes of your homeworkers. Usually the inspector will be visiting to undertake a health and safety inspection. However, they could also visit you after an accident that may have been caused by work activities. See our guide on how to record and report an accident or incident.
They will then be seeking to:
investigate the causes of the accident
advise you whether you need to take action to prevent a recurrence
determine if there has been a breach of health and safety law
Whatever the purpose of the visit, inspectors have the authority to take certain actions, including:
carrying out examinations and investigations, including taking measurements, photographs and samples
taking possession of an article and arranging for it to be dismantled or tested
seizing and making safe any article or substance that could cause serious personal injury
requesting information and taking statements from people they think can help an investigation
inspecting and copying documents
If the inspector considers that you are breaking health and safety law, or your activities give rise to a serious risk, they can:
issue an informal warning, verbally or in writing
issue an improvement notice or prohibition notice
prosecute the company or individuals
Health and safety awareness officers (sometimes known as workplace contact officers) are specially trained staff whose role is to support the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) regulatory work. Their main purpose is to give you advice, information and guidance. Health and safety awareness officers need your consent to visit you but do have powers to enforce certain aspects of employers' liability compulsory insurance. They will also collect information about your business that will be used by the HSE in any future visits.
