# Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002

Canonical: https://paddl-ai.co/regulations/coshh-regulations-2002

Understand COSHH Regulations 2002, which require employers to assess, control, and monitor exposure to hazardous substances including cleaning chemicals, gases, and biological agents.

Effective: 2002-11-21 (last amended 2005-04-06)
Enforced by: Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and Local Authority Environmental Health
Applies to: All employers and self-employed persons, Restaurants and commercial kitchens, Hotels and hospitality businesses, Cleaning companies, Any business using chemicals

The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH) require employers to control substances that can harm workers health. In hospitality, this primarily covers cleaning chemicals, sanitisers, descalers, oven cleaners, pest control products, and other chemicals commonly used in kitchens, bars, and housekeeping. COSHH also covers biological agents (such as harmful bacteria) and dust. Employers must assess the risks from hazardous substances, put controls in place to prevent or adequately control exposure, and ensure those controls are used and maintained. For each hazardous substance, employers should obtain and keep the Safety Data Sheet (SDS) from the supplier, conduct a COSHH assessment, and implement appropriate control measures. COSHH assessments must be reviewed regularly, particularly when processes change or new chemicals are introduced.

## Key requirements

- **Assess the risks from hazardous substances** Employers must identify all hazardous substances used or produced in the workplace, assess the risks they pose to health, and determine the level of exposure.
- **Prevent or adequately control exposure** Where possible, eliminate the use of hazardous substances or substitute with less hazardous alternatives. Where this is not possible, use controls such as ventilation, PPE, and safe working procedures.
- **Provide information, instruction, and training** Employees must be given information about the hazardous substances they work with, including the risks and the precautions they need to take.
- **Maintain safety data sheets (SDS)** Obtain and keep current safety data sheets from suppliers for all hazardous substances used. These must be accessible to employees.
- **Monitor exposure where necessary** For substances with workplace exposure limits, employers may need to carry out monitoring to ensure limits are not exceeded.
- **Health surveillance where appropriate** Where employees are exposed to substances known to cause specific diseases, health surveillance may be required to detect early signs of ill health.

## What a business has to do

1. **Create a chemical inventory** List every chemical product used in your business. This includes cleaning products, sanitisers, descalers, oven cleaners, and pest control products.
2. **Obtain safety data sheets for all products** Get the current SDS from the supplier for every chemical product. These provide essential information about hazards, safe handling, storage, and first aid.
3. **Conduct COSHH assessments** For each hazardous substance, assess who might be harmed, how, and what controls are needed. Document your assessments.
4. **Implement control measures** Put controls in place such as ventilation, PPE (gloves, eye protection), locked storage for concentrated chemicals, and clear labelling.
5. **Train staff on safe chemical handling** Train all staff who handle chemicals on safe use, storage, dilution, PPE requirements, and emergency procedures (spills, first aid).
6. **Review assessments regularly** Review COSHH assessments at least annually and whenever you change products, processes, or introduce new chemicals.

## Penalties

| Offence | Penalty |
| --- | --- |
| Failure to carry out COSHH assessments | HSE can issue improvement notices. Prosecution can result in an unlimited fine. For serious breaches, up to 2 years imprisonment. |
| Failure to control exposure to hazardous substances | Unlimited fine on conviction. If exposure leads to employee illness or injury, additional civil claims and compensation may follow. |
| Failure to provide adequate training and information | Improvement notices and prosecution with an unlimited fine. HSE and local authority inspectors check training records. |
| Failure to maintain safety data sheets | Improvement notice. Persistent non-compliance can result in prohibition notices and prosecution. |

## Questions

**What substances are covered by COSHH?**

COSHH covers chemicals, products containing chemicals, fumes, dusts, vapours, mists, nanotechnology, gases, biological agents (germs that cause diseases), and any material mixture or compound used at work that can harm peoples health. In hospitality, this primarily means cleaning chemicals, sanitisers, and other products used in kitchens and housekeeping.

**Do I need a COSHH assessment for every product?**

You need a COSHH assessment for every product that poses a risk to health. You can group similar products (e.g. all general-purpose cleaning sprays) into a single assessment if the risks and controls are the same. Very low-risk products like ordinary soap may not need a formal assessment.

**How often should COSHH assessments be reviewed?**

Review assessments at least annually and whenever you change a product, change a process, or become aware of new information about a substance. Also review after any incident involving a chemical, such as a spill or an employee reaction.

**Who enforces COSHH in hospitality?**

For most hospitality businesses, COSHH is enforced by local authority Environmental Health teams. The HSE may also be involved in larger operations. Both have the power to inspect, issue notices, and prosecute.