» Back to listing HSE to charge for their time under fee-for-fault legislation

The HSE expects to charge organisations £133 an hour for inspectors’ work identifying and helping remedy minor breaches.

HSE programme director Gordon Macdonald said the provisional hourly rate for so-called fee-for-fault charging will be introduced in April 2012, following a consultation exercise due to start later this month.  MacDonald admitted that cost recovery was controversial, but said charging will definitely go ahead; the consultation will canvas opinions on the details of the scheme. 

The plan for HSE to charge for advising dutyholders on non-compliance was announced by employment minister Chris Grayling in January along with a 35% cut in the executive’s budget by 2014.