Jurisdiction: Great Brittain
Commencement:1st April 2021
These Regulations revoke and replace The Health and Safety and Nuclear (Fees) Regulations 2016. The 2021 Regulations introduce fee increases for fees that were prescribed in the previous Regulations. Other than fee changes, the 2021 Regulations are almost identical to the 2016 Regulations (as amended). The only changes (apart from fee increases) are minor clarifications.
It is policy of the Government, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) to charge fees for a range of activities described as ‘permissioning work’ in order to recover their costs. Permissioning activities that are charged for include:
- assessing and accepting safety cases;
- issuing licences;
- issuing certificates;
- granting approvals;
- granting exemptions from regulations;
- accepting notifications;
- assessing onshore borehole notifications (to align with cost recovery for offshore borehole notifications); and
- ‘Fee for Intervention’ (see below for more detail).
The charges set out in these Regulations are reviewed annually with the fees charged being amended as appropriate.
These Regulations fix or determine the fees payable by an applicant to, in most cases the HSE, in respect of:
- an application for approval of plant and equipment under The Agriculture (Tractor Cabs) Regulations 1974;
- applications under The Freight Containers (Safety Conventions) Regulations 2017;
- applications for approval under The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012;
- examination or surveillance by an employment medical adviser under The Ionising Radiations Regulations 2017, The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012, The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002, and The Work in Compressed Air Regulations 1996;
- medical surveillance by an employment medical adviser under The Control of Lead at Work Regulations 2002;
- applications under The Ionising Radiations Regulations 2017 and The Radiation (Emergency Preparedness and Public Information) Regulations 2019;
- applications under The Explosives Regulations 2014 and The Acetylene Safety (England and Wales and Scotland) Regulations 2014;
- applications under The Petroleum (Consolidation) Regulations 2014;
- applications under Part 9 of The Dangerous Goods in Harbour Areas Regulations 2016;
- applications and notifications under The Genetically Modified Organisms (Contained Use) Regulations 2014;
- various functions performed by the regulator in relation to offshore installations;
- assessing gas safety cases, providing associated advice or considering exemptions, under The Gas Safety (Management) Regulations 1996;
- regulator functions in relation to nuclear installations under the Nuclear Installations Act 1965;
- approval and provision of offshore first-aid training and medical training; and
- notifications under The Borehole Sites and Operations Regulations 1995;
- various regulator functions under Regulation (EU) No 528/2012 concerning the making available on the market and use of biocidal products and The Biocidal Products and Chemicals (Appointment of Authorities and Enforcement) Regulations 2013;
- consideration of certain proposals made under Regulation (EC) 1272/2008 on classification, labelling and packaging of substances and mixtures (“CLP Regulation”); and
- functions performed by the Executive where a “fee for intervention” is raised (see detailed note below).
This scheme was first implemented in October 2012. The fee for intervention scheme allows an HSE inspector to recover costs, known as Fees for Intervention (FFI), from companies found to be in material breach of health and safety law. If an HSE Inspector visits a business and finds any ‘material breach’ of health and safety regulations, the Executive can recover its costs in investigating the breach from the business, by raising a ‘fee for intervention’ which is calculated at a rate which may be increased from time to time. [As at 1st January 2021 the rate is £157/ hour].
Businesses will not be charged where there is no breach identified or where the breaches are minor (not ‘material’).
There is a right of appeal to the HSE. If the HSE dismisses the appeal, additional charges may be incurred and rendered. There is a further right of appeal to a panel comprising the HSE and an independent panel member.
n.b. Local Authority inspectors do not have the power to raise invoices under this scheme.
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