HSE press release E243:03 - 12 December 2003
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) today published a report of a survey on compliance with Employers' Liability Compulsory Insurance (ELCI). The survey, undertaken by Greenstreet Berman, concluded that ELCI compliance was high - nearly 99.5% of those employers surveyed were ELCI compliant. The study was carried out in agreement with the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) to help inform the Second Stage of the ELCI Review, a report of which was published on 4 December 2003.
HSE's own contact with duty holders suggested that there was a very low level of non-compliance. While we noted but disagreed with the high levels of non-compliance identified by the FSB and Axa in surveys they carried out, we were keen to get a more accurate picture.
There were two elements to the survey:
2,437 respondents replied to the survey questionnaire. The survey reported 0.53% non-compliance across all firms and noticeably a variation in compliance according to size of organisation:
This is a far lower level than was suggested by recent surveys by Axa (13%) and the Federation of Small Business (8%) but is in line with compliance survey findings from Aon, the OFT and the TUC. There were no significant variations in non-compliance based on sector or geographical area.
The second element of the survey was a study of the number of ELCI policies in place in March 2002 compared to Autumn 2003. The survey took account of the fact the number of businesses in the UK increased over this period, (the number of VAT registered firms increased 0.4%). Data from insurers revealed that the number of ELCI policies in force appears to have increased from 930,085 in March 2002 to 1,078,788 in Autumn 2003.
The study also found evidence that many firms continue to experience great difficulty in securing ELCI, on grounds of affordability, which has caused them to take cost cutting measures. The most commonly sited response to the increased cost of ELCI has been to "try and improve health and safety performance" (50% of respondents).
The HSE is committed to continuing to work with the DWP, the insurance industry and other stakeholders to ensure that ELCI compliance continues to remain high.
Copies of Survey of compliance with Employers' Liability Compulsory Insurance (ELCI) Act 1969, RR188, ISBN 0 7176 2796 9, price £15.00 will shortly be available from HSE Books http://books.hse.gov.uk
1. DWP Report of the Second Stage of the ELCI Review was published on 4 December 2003;
2. "Survey of compliance with Employers' Liability Compulsory Insurance", Report by Greenstreet Berman, published by HSE (http://www.hse.gov.uk/research/rrhtm/rr188.htm)
3. HSE can check compliance with ELCI during general inspections by HSE Inspectors, and also through the work of its Workplace Contact Officers (WCOs), Working Time Officers (WTOs) and Compliance Officers (COs), who focus on small and medium size enterprises. During visits, they may ask to see an ELCI certificate, and where a valid certificate cannot be produced HSE will write to the employer. If no satisfactory response is received within a reasonable time (21 days under current instructions) then HSE will make a statutory request ('Notice to Produce') for its production. Failure to produce a valid certificate following service of a 'Notice to Produce' is an offence, for which the employer may be prosecuted. However, there may be circumstances where HSE considers it appropriate to issue a 'Notice to Produce' straight away where an employer fails to produce a valid certificate.
All enquiries from journalists should be directed to the HSE Press Office
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