The government has put forward proposals for a new 'corporate killing' offence. Corporate killing covers death caused by the failure of a company's management to safeguard the health and safety of employees or people affected by its activities. Corporate killing is only committed where the company's conduct in causing death falls far below what could reasonably be expected.
On conviction a company may be ordered to pay fines, compensation or to carry out remedial action to ensure that failings are not repeated. Officers of the company may be disqualified from acting in management roles and even parent companies may be convicted. Potentially there are major consequences for the property industry and in particular property development and construction. Many companies have health and safety procedures that may be unknown or ignored at site level which may be evidence of management failure.
The consultation period for the proposals ended at the beginning of September 2000 and it is likely that many of the proposals will be introduced in the near future. Companies must start to take the implementation of their health and safety procedures far more seriously now or else face the consequences of non-compliance.
The information and opinions contained in this publication are provided by national law firm Hammond Suddards Edge. They should not be applied to any particular set of facts without seeking appropriate legal or other professional advice.
