Legionella Risk Assessments
Legionella risk assessments are a statutory legal requirement under the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002.
The Hazardous Substances Regulations have been around since 2002 but previously only applied to commercial property. 'Domestic property' was excluded from the legislation because of its size. However, the decision was made by the Health & Safety Executive to remove the exclusion because research and evidence showed that legionella was also present in smaller domestic water systems.
How Bierce can help
The first step is to organise Legionella risk assessments on all properties which you own or manage.
A Legionella risk assessment is a survey of the hot and cold-water system in a property to identify if there are conditions present which could cause Legionella to proliferate and cause harm to tenants. The duty-holder is responsible for ensuring the risk assessment is carried out. The duty-holder is the same as under the Gas Regulations, meaning the landlord, or, (if there is a management agreement in place), the letting/managing agent.
The second step is that tenants must be advised of the risks and precautions.
