Protecting Visitors and Contractors: Legal Duties and Best Practice
- Shaun Smith
- 5 days ago
- 7 min read
As a health and safety consultant, I often advise and assess the safety of contractors and visitors. Ensuring the safety of all persons on your premises, including visitors and contractors is not only a legal obligation but a fundamental duty of care.
Whether you operate a manufacturing plant, commercial office, logistics or construction site, the responsibility to protect individuals who are not part of your regular workforce is crucial. I have written this short guidance to outline the UK legislation which puts a clear perspective on what is required to ensure visitor and contractor safety. I have added a few references to what I would recommend to my clients as best practice and touched on a few case law examples to emphasise the importance of getting this right.
Legal Framework
As is almost always the case, we can refer directly to the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HASWA). In this case we are focused on Section 3 of the Act which places a general duty on employers to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that people other than employees (such as contractors and visitors) are not exposed to risks to their health and safety.
We could also touch on legal requirements under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations, Construction Design Management (CDM) and the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order. Which also emphasise the importance of thinking beyond your own employees to the effects of your work on others and the safety of those on your premises or site.
In Risk Assessment we always consider the effects and required control of third parties.
In CDM we require strict site control, access, egress, awareness of site hazards and control not just to the worker but to visitors and others who may be effected.
As a Safety Consultant I conduct Fire Risk Assessment, part of this evaluation is focused on visitor safety, how do we keep them safe, what precautions and planning do we have for emergency evacuation. Often buildings are classed as low risk such as offices but how are we controlling contractors who may introduce “hot works”, chemicals and combustibles.
Selecting the Right Contractor: Due Diligence and Legal Duty
Engaging a contractor for on-site work is not simply a commercial decision; it invokes legal responsibilities to ensure that they will not endanger your employees or other third parties through their actions. To control this risk you must:
Assess contractor competency through:
Qualifications, training records, memberships (e.g. CHAS, SafeContractor, ISO 45001 & ISO 9001)
References from previous clients
Industry accreditations
Review RAMS (Risk Assessments and Method Statements)
Ensure they are site-specific, clear, and address risks to both the contractor and others.
It is a continual battle with contractors to provide relevant RAMS which reflect your site and required risk control. It has become common practice for generic submission and acceptance. Yes the contractor should not be providing a generic set of RAMS that have not considered any unique site risk but equally it is your duty of care to protect your employees and others therefore to accept non-specific RAMS puts the failing back on you.
Check enforcement history
Review HSE public register or ask contractors for disclosure
Poor safety records or prior prosecutions should trigger further scrutiny
Understand past performance
Look at insurance claims, incident records, or near-miss data
This may seem a long and time consuming process but remember, the contractor wants the work, this is a legal duty so the right contractor will be expecting this and have the documentation ready for submission. Also once the assessment has been completed and approved you can add them to your approved contractor list allowing reference to a reliable, competent pool of trusted contractors.
Managing Contractor Safety On-Site
Once contractors are selected, their management must continue throughout the project lifecycle. This includes:
Site inductions
Access control and supervision
Permit to work systems for high-risk activities (e.g. confined space entry, hot works)
Regular briefings and toolbox talks
Shared understanding of emergency arrangements
This must be proportionate to risk both of the task being carried out by the contractor and the risks of site activity. The higher risk often arises when the risk of contracted task and site risk are unproportionate and one of the involved parties (either contractor or contracting party) are not aware of the hazard and risk caused by the activity or site.
This may be for example an office based administrative company who have contracted for major construction and renovation. The contracting party may have no knowledge of how this work will be achieved and what hazards will be introduced during the task period. Even if RAMS are submitted and accurate it is important that someone is available to understand them and ensure that the controls suggested are adequate.
It is the responsibility of the contracting party to ensure the contractor is competent and safe as detailed earlier. In cases such as this, external help and advice should be considered. Note that when contracted work is of a complex high risk nature, so long as the contracting party can demonstrate a duty of care in finding the right contractor any damage and injury caused by contractor negligence usually sees the liability fall on that contractor.
Ensure you can demonstrate that duty of care.
Visitor Safety: Foreseeable and Preventable
Unlike contractors, visitors typically have no prior knowledge of site-specific risks. This increases their vulnerability and the need for effective control measures.
Key Controls for Visitor Safety:
Visitor sign-in and out
Site / building induction – proportionate to risk.
Supervised access to areas with hazards
Provision of PPE where necessary
Information on fire exits, alarms, and assembly points
Information on other foreseeable emergency plans
Clear signage
Recent Case: Gwilliam v West Hertfordshire NHS Trust
This case concerned the liability of a hospital for injuries sustained by a visitor at a fundraising event held on its grounds. The visitor was injured due to the negligence of an independent contractor hired by the hospital to provide an activity.
Two facts came from this case:
It established that occupiers have a duty to take reasonable steps to ensure that contractors providing potentially hazardous activities on their premises have adequate insurance and competency.
The case also highlighted that the duty (liability) may be discharged if reasonable inquiries are made to ensure that the right contractor is used and the occupier is misled by the contractor.
The Importance of Induction and Site-Specific Training
Contractors and visitors should not be assumed to know your site. Inductions are essential tools for risk communication. Depending on the complexity and hazards present, your induction programme should cover:
Site rules and conduct
Restricted zones and authorisations
Hazard-specific briefings (e.g. chemicals, moving vehicles, noise)
Emergency procedures and first aid arrangements
Inductions may be:
Face-to-face
Digital (online modules)
Supported by printed guides or safety leaflets
Case law example R v Associated Octel Ltd [1996] (House of Lords)
Incident: During maintenance work in a chemical tank, a contractor’s employee was inside grinding and cleaning a tank wall using acetone. A permit-to-work system had been applied but failed to mention acetone hazards. A broken light bulb ignited the vapour, causing a flash fire that badly burned him.
Legal Issue: Whether Octel, as the site operator, owed a duty under Section 3 of HSWA 1974 to non-employees, like the contractor’s worker, even without direct control over the work methods.
Outcome: Octel was convicted and fined. The House of Lords confirmed their duty extended to ensuring safe conditions for independent contractors performing tasks integral to their undertaking. They were held accountable for failing to require safe practices for acetone use and lighting
I have had this very discussion with a client who had shown good duty of care selecting competent contract HGV drivers but then had initially failed to give additional training and supervision. The client believed that simply ensuring HGV drivers were competent at driving and delivery was enough. This was however inaccurate as the product and working environment had many hazards that it would not be reasonable to expect a HGV driver to understand and avoid without specific training.
Emergency Preparedness: Fires, First Aid, and Evacuation
Visitors and contractors must know emergency actions and be able to act quickly and appropriately. This means:
Good contractor and visitor control – who is on site, how many and where.
Fire action notices
Alarm systems tested and audible in all areas
Drills that consider the presence of non-employees
Potential supply of evacuation chair and training to assist vulnerable persons
It is often the case that inductions are structured at the start of a project covering all the points raised in this document including emergency actions, it is however often the case that through illness, holidays, general absence or required changing skill sets, new contract workers are introduced to site as the project develops and inductions are missed either through poor client / contractor communication or no available training resource.
Always consider this and discuss this with the contractor. Know what is happening on your site or in your building. Delays in evacuation during a fire or emergency situation don’t just put the individual at risk but others who may be deployed to find and rescue them.
Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 imposes a duty on the 'responsible person' to ensure that all persons on the premises know what to do in the event of a fire.
Communication and Coordination: Avoiding The Silo Mentality
Effective communication between all departments of your organisation and external contractors or visiting groups is vital. Best practices include:
Pre-task coordination meetings
Daily briefings and shift handovers
Joint safety committees for long-term or high-risk projects
Ensure everyone in your business is aware of upcoming plans, if contract work introduces risk everyone should know, this may be as simple as a blocked or altered emergency exit but could involve large exclusion zones, hazardous products and required action. Getting everyone on board keeps everyone safe.
Summary Checklist for Employers
To ensure compliance and good practice:
Vet contractors for competency and safety performance
Review and agree site-specific RAMS – do not be afraid to challenge them if you are unsure.
Deliver effective site inductions – familiar hazards and rules to you may not be to third parties.
Control and supervise access
Inform all non-employees of known risks
Prepare for emergency situations including fire and first aid
Maintain clear communication throughout projects.
Final Thoughts
Whether you operate a single warehouse or manage multiple sites across the UK, your legal responsibilities towards contractors and visitors cannot be delegated. By selecting competent contractors, delivering informative inductions, and providing a safe environment, you fulfil both your statutory duty and your moral obligation.
Neglecting these responsibilities can lead to serious consequences, not only for the individuals involved but also for your business’s reputation, finances, and legal standing.
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