Do you rent a barn, workshop or even just a storage area to another person? Then you should be aware of your responsibility as someone who has control of premises. Unfortunately, many people think that once the premises have been rented out and contracts have been signed, they no longer have anything to do with those premises, but they do!
Section 4 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 states that those in control of premises (landlords) “Places a duty on those in control of premises, which are non-domestic and used as a place of work, to ensure they do not endanger those who work within them. This extends to plant and substances, means of access and egress as well as to the premises themselves”
These duties are placed upon such persons to ensure that, so far as is reasonably practicable, the premises are safe and without risks to the health of:
- People working on the premises who are not the employees of the person in control of the premises
- Any persons who use plant and substances made available to them for their use on the premises
So that’s the legal jargon, but what does this mean in plain English?
As a landlord you must ensure that the premises you have rented out or any equipment that is part of the contract agreement, is and remains safe to all those who enter that workplace even if they are not yours the landlords employees.
For example: If you were to lease out a workshop type unit and the fixed wiring was out of date and one of the workshop employees was seriously injured by electrocution, if on investigation it was found that the accident was caused by faulty fixed wiring, then the landlord would be in breach of Section 4 and would more than likely be prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive HSE. Although the fixed wiring electrics of the premises are the landlords responsibility, the portable appliances are not, unless the landlord has provided them as part of the agreement.
So you can see, as with most legislation it can be as clear as mud.
Fire Safety
Another example is fire safety: You may not be responsible for preventing fires in the premises as this is the responsibility of the tenant as part of their own health and safety procedures and out of your hands, however the landlord is required to ensure that should there be a fire there is adequate firefighting equipment available to assist occupiers to escape safely, this will include a means of raising the alarm, emergency lighting, emergency signs and of course a safe means of escape.
Landlords are required to provide a basic fire safety system to match the type of building, the tenant is required to provide additional adequate fire safety for the type of business taking place in the premises.
If a unit is being let as office space, then the fire safety provided by the landlord would be adequate, on the other hand, if a unit was rented out as a vehicle repair workshop, then the occupier would need to ensure that adequate fire precautions are in place which would mean additional precautions and equipment being required.
Safe Access & Egress
Another area that is sometimes overlooked by landlords, is a safe access & egress. “Can those who need to access the workplace you have rented out get to it and leave it safely”?
This will cover a few different issues such as getting safely from a parking area to the work area, ground conditions – is the ground flat and even, or are there potholes that may cause a trip hazards, or are there separate walkways that can keep pedestrians and vehicle segregated? All these if not addressed could lead to a potential prosecution by the enforcement agencies, or worse the dreaded letter from a “No win No Fee” company because a tenant’s employee or visitor has had an accident on your premises.
So if you are already renting out some of your premises or you intend to rent them out, ensure you contact your CXCS Health & Safety advisor to ensure that you have everything covered.
