Unfortunately, when you mention the phrase ‘health and safety’ you often don’t get that positive a reaction, as some people feel that they are smart enough to look after themselves. However, the fact of the matter is that health and safety is there to ensure that everyone in the UK is able to work in a safe environment and to protect business owners from costly compensation claims. This is why it is essential you take health and safety seriously when it comes to you shop, and here Nova Insurance shows you how:

Learn the Rules

Health and safety is not optional, which means that if your shop does not meet up to certain criteria you could be shut down and your shop insurance will likely become void. Even if you own a small business you still need to adhere to health and safety regulations, and if you have five or more employees (which most shops do) you will also be required to have a written health and safety document. Luckily, as shops are generally less high risk than other business such as those that work with chemicals, high powered tools or at heights, it is likely you will not need to adhere to too strict regulations. If you are unsure of which regulations you need to follow the first thing you need to do is visit the government’s health and safety website or contact your local authority who will be able to provide you with more information.

Assign Health and Safety Duties

If you only have a small business you may be able to take care of all health and safety duties on your own, however if not you may want to delegate some of these duties to other members of staff. These duties don’t have to be anything complicated, just small tasks such as asking them to make sure that if they see something they believe could be a hazard to take care of it and advise staff how the hazard could be avoided in the future. However, if your business is particularly large, or you sell products that you think will require extra health and safety measures, then you may need to employ someone to take care of your health and safety duties. When it comes to health and safety it’s important that you don’t miss anything out, so if you feel that neither you nor your employees can handle it then it’s essential you hire someone to help.

Carrying out Risk Assessments

One of the most important aspects of health and safety for your shop is to carry out a risk assessment which will enable you to determine all the potential hazards on your premises. For example, stock rooms can be particularly dangerous as items are usually stored on high shelves, which means that they have the potential to fall and injure someone. At the same time, you must also ensure that your staff has all the necessary facilities in order to work in a safe environment, such as good ventilation, space to carry out their work in a safe manner and work equipment that is properly maintained. Small things such as ensuring that no one leaves items in walkways or areas where someone could trip on them should also be part of your risk assessment, as shops are generally busy places where people are moving about all the time.

Work with your Staff

No matter what company you own, the only way that your health and safety measures will be effective is if you and your entire staff work together. One of the things you will need to do in order to comply with health and safety laws is to make sure that there are first aid measures in place should one of your staff become injured while at work. At the very least, this means you will need a first aid box, someone who is in charge of first aid and information that can be easily accessed by your employees on who they should contact should they need first aid. It’s also strongly advised that you or one of your employees goes for first aid training on a regular basis so that you will have the skills to deal with any issues.

Ensuring that you have health and safety measures in place for your shop will not only make it a safer and more pleasant place to work for you and your staff, but will also protect your business from liability should an issue occur. Remember, if you ever need more information visit the government’s website or talk to your local authority.