Work Equipment Regulations - Duty Holders
The employer must ensure that the requirements imposed by the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (Work Equipment Regulations) are met.
The requirements imposed on the employer also apply to:
- any occupier and/or landlord and/or other person(s) with control over any non-domestic premises made available to people as a place of work in respect of work equipment used by such people in those premises;
- any owner or occupier of a workplace deemed to be a factory in respect of work equipment used by people working there;
- any self-employed worker as regards equipment he uses at work.
Designers, manufacturers, importers, suppliers and installers of work equipment have related duties under section 6 of the Health and Safety at Work Act. As regards the risks relating to such equipment, these duties include provision of health and safety information to help employers assess the risks and eliminate or control these.
Equipment To Which Employer's Duties Apply
The employer's legal responsibilities, whether or not he is in control of the work equipment or the workplace at which it is used, extend to:
- work equipment he has provided for use by any of his employees whilst at work (eg. new, refurbished or second-hand equipment, whether purchased, leased, hired, borrowed or otherwise brought in by the employer);
- work equipment provided by someone else (eg. a customer, supplier, landlord, other employer sharing his workplace, etc) for use by any of his employees whilst at work;
- work equipment used by any of his employees whilst at work (eg. where some employees use their own tools for work, or where they use their own or a colleague's mobile phone, electric kettle, etc in the course of their work).