News - October 2020 - Legal Update

Working from home. On 22 September 2020 the government returned to its previous strategy on home working, saying that those who can work effectively from home are expected to do so over the winter period.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/working-safely-during-coronavirus-covid-19

Safety Bulletin: failure to detect dangerous gas. To highlight the risk of misleading gas detection readings associated with the use of sampling tubes with pumped gas detectors, the HSE has published a safety bulletin. This comes after a gas detector failed to detect the presence of a flammable vapour and an explosion occurred during hot work.

https://www.hse.gov.uk/safetybulletins/failure-to-detect-dangerous-gas.htm

Fixed gaseous fire extinguishing systems. A guidance note on the standards which apply to automatic gaseous fire protection systems which are utilised in particular to protect IT facilities, particularly major data storage and processing rooms, has been published by the Fire Industry Association.

https://www.fia.uk.com/news/guidance-note-guidance-notefixed-gaseous-fire-extinguishing-systems-system-actuation-considerations.html

Guidance - Using the new UKCA mark. Guidance has been published on the new UKCA (UK Conformity Assessed) marking which comes into force on 1st January 2021. Most goods placed onto the market within the UK which previously required the CE marking within Great Britain are covered by the new UK product marking. In Northern Ireland, the UKCA marking alone cannot be used for products as these goods require the CE marking or UK(NI) marking.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/using-the-ukca-mark-from-1-january-2021

Lack of traffic management plan resulted in a £200,000 fine. A facilities company has been fined over an accident in which a worker was run down by a small road roller during footpath repairs at a country park. In court, Totally Local Company Limited (T) pleaded guilty to putting employees and the public at risk on the open site and was handed a £200,000 fine.

https://www.ioshmagazine.com/2020/09/15/lack-traffic-management-plan-costs-fm-co-ps200000

Jet wash fatality resulted in a £2 million fine. On 18 June 2017, an employee of Leadec Ltd (L) suffered a fatal impact injury while using high-pressure water jetting equipment to clear paint residue from waste-water pipes. An HSE investigation found that safety devices were not in use, allowing the flexi hose to pull back out of the pipe during use. The company pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, was fined £2 million plus costs of £30,000.

https://www.ioshmagazine.com/2020/09/17/ps2m-fine-over-jet-wash-fatality