CONSTRUCTION & BIM
THE COSTS OF FAILING TO MEET THE BSA
Fines, imprisonment and staggering hikes in insurance premiums are just some of the ways businesses can pay for failing to manage compliance, risk and competency against the Building Safety Act, says Peter McAteer, CEO of Sysmax.
At the recent Vision Construct Conference, the real risks of failing to manage compliance, risk and competency against the Building Safety Act (BSA) were laid bare. After the expert panel debated the subject, nobody would have left unsure about how serious the HSE and BSR are about enforcement. But what may have come as a surprise, is that insurance premiums for social housing and built environment organisations are sky-rocketing for those who cannot proof compliance with the BSA.
Once a market is seen as exposed, the insurance sector acts fast which is what we’re seeing now in the context of the BSA where our sector is perceived as weak by insurers and underwriters. For housing, it really is a case of act now, or pay later. And pay a lot more later.
The insurance hikes are just one of the fall-outs we’re currently seeing as the sector still seems to be struggling with the concept and expectations of the BSA. I always describe competency and compliance as two sides of the same coin: competency is personal. It’s the human aspect of compliance. In addition to struggling to get to grips with these fundamentals, organisations need to understand
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that the new regime is applicable to all businesses involved in the supply chain, from Tier 1 contractors and SMEs, to housing providers.
We need to collectively move away from the lethargy of ‘oh it won’t affect me’. It will, and at the conference John Vanstone, Chair of Industry Competence Committee pointedly said: “The BSR is going to reach further and further and faster and faster.” We also had the menacing reminder that: “The HSE has a very successful prosecution record.”
Let’s get to the point The sector simply cannot afford to wait, and ignorance is not a defence. Not only do you have to be compliant, but you also have to PROVE compliance and competency for the tasks being undertaken, managing third-party risk and proving The Golden Thread. You need data and insight for this proof, and I can’t stress this enough. Organisations can no longer hide waiting in the wings to ‘see what happens’ or dance around committees, acronyms and confusion. Remember those insurance hikes I mentioned at the start? They’re happening right now. The maximum
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