The enforcement for the carriage of dangerous goods is undertaken by several authorities (excluding Class 7 radioactive materials) depending on which mode of transport;

For road the enforcement authorities are:

• Health and Safety Executive (HSE)
• Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA)
• Police

For rail the enforcement authority is:

• Office of the rail regulator. (ORR)

For sea the enforcement authority is:

• Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA)

For air the enforcement authority is:

• Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)

For the carriage of Class 7 materials the Department for Transport are the enforcement authority who work in partnership with the other authorities.

Improvement notices

Section 21 HSWA states that, where an inspector is of the opinion that a person is contravening one or more of the relevant statutory provisions, or has contravened one or more of those provisions in circumstances that make it likely that the contravention will continue or be repeated, s/he may serve an improvement notice. The notice should:

• state that s/he is of that opinion
• specify the provision(s) in question
• give particulars of the reasons why s/he is of that opinion
• require the person to remedy the contravention or the matters occasioning it
• specify the period for compliance, which should be not less than 21 days from the date of service of the notice, being the period in which the recipient of the notice may lodge an appeal with the employment tribunal

If an appeal is brought against service of an improvement notice, the operation of the notice is suspended until the appeal is either heard or withdrawn.

Selection of the appropriate notice

HSE’s Enforcement Management Model assists inspectors in using their discretion to make enforcement decisions. It summarises the factors inspectors will consider in determining an appropriate response to risks and apparent breaches of health and safety legislation, including the degree of risk and the existence of relevant benchmark standards.

Prohibition notices

Provisions relating to the service of prohibition notices are set out in sections 22 and 23 HSWA. Prohibition notices may be served in relation to activities which are being, or are likely to be, carried on, and to which any of the relevant statutory provisions apply (or will apply).

Section 22 allows an inspector to serve a prohibition notice on a person if s/he is of the opinion that an activity carried on (or likely to be carried on) by or under the control of that person involves (or will involve) a risk of serious personal injury.

If the activity in question has been carried on but has been temporarily suspended as a result of an accident, the activity may still be continuing for the purposes of section 22 and the notice may be framed in the present tense. If, however, the activity has not previously been carried on, the inspector must be of the opinion that it is likely to be carried on in a way which will involve a risk of serious personal injury.