Lower premiums bring christmas cheer

Companies employing a chartered health and safety practitioner will receive an unexpected gift this Christmas; the prospect of lower insurance premiums thanks to demands made by the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH).

Following calls made by IOSH to lower premiums in response to Chartered Safety, the Association of British Insurers (ABI) has agreed to use its influence to raise awareness among its members of this development. It has welcomed the move and acknowledged that companies receiving competent health and safety advice from a Chartered Safety and Health Practitioner are likely to suffer fewer accidents in the workplace, resulting in fewer claims against insurance.

With accidents and ill health costing the British insurance industry 1.5 billion a year, insurers are beginning to recognise the importance of the designation. Already Sennet, one of the brokers in the field, has agreed to offer a 7.5 per cent reduction on Professional Indemnity premiums to chartered consultants and sole traders. Sennetís response has a direct effect on small and medium sized businesses that employ a chartered practitioner.

The new chartered designation for health and safety means that occupational safety is now recognised as a vital management discipline, comparable in technical and professional rigour to finance, marketing and human resources. It also means that companies in their staff development and recruitment will be able to specify particular levels of professional experience for health and safety practitioners. To achieve Chartered Status, practitioners must attain a degree or equivalent, carry out a minimum of two yearsí Initial Professional Development and undertake a peer interview.

President of IOSH Neil Budworth said: ìWe urge underwriters to regard the presence of Chartered Safety and Healthy Practitioners as a positive feature when rating risks. They can be certain that health and safety is being administered to a standard that should give rise to a minimum number of accidents.î

The call comes as the Institution designated 6,000 of its 28,000-strong membership as the first-ever Chartered Safety and Health Practitioners this year.