What is formal action?

INVESTIGATION

If a serious incident or injury has occurred it will be reported to the HSE and an investigation will follow. Your Business will be requested to provide a lot of information to the HSE/Local Authority and maybe the police. At the same time you will also be expected to undertake an internal investigation into the incident. Your internal investigation will require documentation and a copy of this can be demanded from you by the HSE/Local Authority/Police.

NOTICES

An immediate way in which the HSE can take formal action is through the use of statutory notices which they can serve to stop particular activities, prevent further work being undertaken or to require that certain steps be taken. These notices can compel you to rectify any breaches within a specified period of time or can even prevent you from letting rooms that are unsafe or opening your B&B/Hostel/Hotel altogether until it or parts of it are made safe.

PROSECUTION

Health and Safety law enables the respective authority to prosecute you for a breach of this nature which may lead to proceedings in the Magistrates Court or if the matter is deemed more serious, in the Crown Court.

Should the prosecution stay in the Magistrates Court, you will face a maximum fine of up to £5,000 however for certain offences this can be increased to up to £20,000.00. The magistrates will also have the option of sentencing you to a period of imprisonment for most offences.

Should the alleged breaches be deemed more serious than the maximum punishment available in the Magistrates Court will allow, you may find the prosecution will transfer into the Crown Court. The maximum punishments are increased in proceedings in the Crown Court and as such were you to be convicted here you could face up to two years in prison and/or a potentially unlimited fine.

On top of this it is standard practice for the Courts to order convicted Defendants to pay the Prosecutions reasonable costs for investigating and prosecuting the case. It goes without saying that this procedure will be particularly costly.

The prosecution can have a wider impact on a business. The damage caused to a businesses reputation by a conviction can, in the long run, turn out to be more costly then the fine itself. If you are a small business and your business plan is to sell the company in the future then potential buyers will carefully inspect your safety record and this may impact on their decision to purchase your company.

When it comes to the health and safety of the general public the local authorities and the courts are committed to ensuring that people disregarding their duties under health and safety law are punished accordingly.

Our team has expertise in advising and defending individuals and businesses in relation to any difficulties faced when the regulatory authority investigate and in some circumstances prosecute alleged breaches of Health and Safety law.

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