Introduction to Health and Safety at Work

17.11.3 Duties under COSHH – Regulation 3
The duties placed on employers under these Regulations 
are extended to (except for health surveillance, monitor-
ing and information and training) persons who may be 
on the premises but not employed whether they are at 
work or not, for example, visitors and contractors.
17.11.4 General 
requirements
There are seven basic steps to comply with COSHH, 
they are:
1. Assess the risks to health
2. Decide what precautions are needed
3. Prevent or adequately control exposure
4. Ensure that control measures are used and 
maintained
5. Monitor the exposure of employees to hazardous 
substances
6. Carry out appropriate health surveillance where 
necessary
7. Ensure employees are properly informed, trained 
and supervised.
17.11.5
Steps 1 and 2 – assessment of health 
risk – Regulation 6
No work may be carried where employees are liable to 
be exposed to substances hazardous to health unless:
➤
a suitable and suffi cient risk assessment, including 
the steps need to meet COSHH, has been made.
The assessment must be reviewed and changes made 
regularly and immediately if:
➤
if it is suspected that it is no longer valid
➤
there has been a signifi cant change in the work to 
which it relates.
➤
the results of any monitoring carried out in accord-
ance with Regulation 10 show it to be necessary
The assessment involves both identifying the substance 
present in the workplace; assessing the risk it presents 
in the way it is used; and deciding what precautions (and 
health surveillance) are needed. Where more than four 
employees are employed the signifi cant fi ndings must be 
recorded and the steps taken to comply with Regulation 7.