A Guide To Health and Safety Sentencing Guidelines 

Pleading guilty to or being convicted of a health and safety offence is typically a stressful experience, especially during the period when you are waiting for a sentence to be handed down. Understanding how the Court sentences health and safety offences can make things easier, as you know the process a Judge must follow. The ‘Health and Safety Offences, Corporate Manslaughter and Food Safety and Hygiene Offences’ Sentencing Guidelines (the ‘Guidelines’) set out how the Court provide direction to the Court on the type and level of sentence to give for a health and safety offence. In this article, we explain how the sentencing guidelines work and what you can do to mitigate the final sentence handed down.

What is the Court’s general approach to health and safety prosecutions?

Health and safety law confers legal duties on businesses and their directors, managers, employees, and owners of premises to protect individuals, including employees, contractors, visitors, and members of the public. In general terms, health and safety breaches are prosecuted more easily than other offences because they are based on the premise of strict liability and, therefore, specific intent does not need to be proven. Crucially, an organisation or individual can be prosecuted even if no one has been injured; the act of exposing people to risk is sufficient to be found guilty of a health and safety offence.

What are the possible penalties for a health and safety breach?

There are several possible penalties which may be levied if you are found guilty of a health and safety breach:

  • Fines – Fines are the primary penalty imposed for health and safety breaches – for individuals and organisations. 
  • Compensation orders – Under s130 of the Powers of Criminal Courts (Sentencing) Act 2000 (PCCSA 2000), if a breach leads to damage or loss for a victim, a judge may issue a compensation order.
  • Remedial orders – in some circumstances, the Court may order the defendant to rectify a specific breach. This will only be considered if the problem has not already been remedied before the Court hears the matter.
  • Disqualification order – The judge may rule that on the basis of the health and safety offence, the defendant should be disqualified from being a company director.
  • Custodial sentence – Under the Health and Safety (Offences) Act 2008 (HSOA 2008), imprisonment is a potential penalty for individuals convicted of a wide range of health and safety breaches, not just the most severe offences.
  • Prosecution costs order – If convicted, the court may order the defendant to reimburse the prosecutor’s costs. This typically covers ‘reasonable’ costs incurred for investigating and prosecuting the case. 

How are the sentencing guidelines applied?

When determining the level of penalty for organisations and people, the judge will first determine the ‘offence category’. This involves working out the culpability of the offender and the risk of harm created by the offence. 

Culpability – ranges from very high to low, with the former being a “deliberate breach of or flagrant disregard for the law” and the latter applying whereby “failings were minor and occurred as an isolated incident”. 

Harm – is determined by a combination of the seriousness of the harm risked (level A, B or C) by the offender’s breach and the likelihood of that harm arising (high, medium or low). Level A corresponds to the most serious outcomes, including death and lifelong dependency. This means that level 1 seriousness and a high likelihood of harm have the highest harm category (category 1). Harm also considers the number of people placed at risk and whether the breach was a significant cause of actual harm.

Calculating fines for organisations

The judge will review the financial status of the organisation, typically examining three years of company accounts. The fine levied will then be based on the turnover of the business, in addition to the level of culpability and harm. The guidelines provide both a starting point and a range which the judge may consider. For a large business with a turnover of £50m or more, if the culpability is deemed to be very high and the harm is in category 1 (the highest), the fine starting point is £4m but can range as high as £10m.

The judge will also take into account a range of other mitigating factors that may reduce the fine, including the impact of the fine on staff and the community and the offender’s commitment to put right their health and safety failings.

Penalties sentences for individuals

For individuals, based on the level of culpability and harm, the judge will determine if a custodial sentence or fine is appropriate. Very high culpability and a high level of harm (levels 1 or 2) will almost definitely lead to a custodial sentence with starting points of 1 year – 18 months. Fine ranges are grouped in bands (A to D), with starting points for band A being 50% of weekly income and band F being 600% of weekly income.

Final words

While the sentencing guidelines for health and safety offences have been made as simple as possible, it is still necessary for judges making sentencing decisions to consider a wide range of factors. An experienced Barrister or Solicitor will ensure all mitigating factors are persuasively put before the Sentencing Judge and that the best interests of you and your business are protected.

Get in Touch

Tanveer Qureshi specialises in general crime, white-collar crime and regulatory investigations and prosecutions.  If you require legal representation or have a related question, please contact me for free consultation or call me directly on ​0203 637 2190.