Repair businesses — fixing computers, mobile phones, tablets, household appliances, watches and personal goods — carry workplace health and safety duties from day one. On top of that, two sector-specific regimes apply depending on the kind of repair work you do:

F-gas — if you repair refrigeration or air-conditioning equipment containing fluorinated greenhouse gases, you and your engineers need F-gas certification, with leak-checking and record-keeping obligations.
WEEE — if your repairs generate waste electrical and electronic equipment, you must handle, store and dispose of it through approved treatment facilities under the WEEE Regulations 2013.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) regulates workplace safety in Great Britain and HSENI in Northern Ireland. F-gas is enforced by the Environment Agency in England, SEPA in Scotland and Natural Resources Wales in Wales. In Northern Ireland the separate F-gas (Northern Ireland) Regulations apply. WEEE is enforced by the Environment Agency and its devolved equivalents.

Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HASAWA)

The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 - primary UK workplace health and safety legislation establishing employer and employee duties. Pure data reference.

The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HASAWA 1974) is the primary legislation governing workplace health and safety in the United Kingdom. It establishes the legal framework for protecting the health, safety and welfare of people at work and those affected by work activities.

Legal status: Primary legislation - principal UK health and safety statute
Royal Assent: 31 July 1974
Came into force: 1 April 1975 (in stages)
Geographic scope: Great Britain (separate legislation applies in Northern Ireland)
Applies to: All employers, employees, self-employed persons, and those who control work premises
Primary duty (Section 2): Employers must ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all employees
Duty to non-employees (Section 3): Employers must protect persons not in their employment (contractors, visitors, public) who may be affected by work activities
Employee duties (Sections 7-8): Employees must take reasonable care for their own health and safety and that of others, cooperate with employers, and not misuse safety equipment
Enforcement authority: Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and local authorities
Maximum penalties (post-2008 amendments): Unlimited fines in Crown Court; imprisonment up to 2 years for individuals; up to 12 months and/or an unlimited fine in Magistrates' Court in England and Wales (12-month custody powers from 18 November 2024; fines unlimited since March 2015 under LASPO 2012, s.85)
Referenced by regulators: Cited in 31 regulatory documents in the ORDS (Office for Regulatory Delivery and Simplification) dataset
Secondary regulations: Enables creation of health and safety regulations (e.g. Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, COSHH, Manual Handling)

Reasonably practicable: The Act uses the term "so far as is reasonably practicable" throughout. This means employers must balance the level of risk against the time, trouble and cost of controlling it. However, the law is weighted in favour of health and safety - employers must demonstrate that control measures would be grossly disproportionate to the risk before they can be considered not reasonably practicable.

Self-employed persons: The Act also places duties on self-employed persons to protect their own health and safety and that of others who may be affected by their work activities.

Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (legislation.gov.uk) (opens in a new tab)

HSE - Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 guidance (opens in a new tab)

What you need to do

Every repair business needs the spine below. Add the f-gas and WEEE duties if they apply to the kind of equipment you work on.

Run a safe business and employ people

Whatever you repair, start with the universal spine. Follow "Set up and run a safe repair services business" for your health and safety, fire safety, insurance, equality and data protection duties.
Meet your f-gas and WEEE duties if they apply

If you handle refrigerants when repairing fridges or air-conditioning equipment, or if you generate waste electrical and electronic equipment from your repairs, follow "Meet your f-gas and WEEE repair duties" for the certification, waste-handling and record-keeping you need.
Confirm you have covered everything

Finish with the repair services compliance checklist to confirm your obligations are met.

Legal basis

Primary legislation and key regulations

Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 Primary 1974 · UK-wide

Read it on legislation.gov.uk legislation.gov.uk

Official guidance

HSE: health and safety made simple (opens in a new tab)

HSE

GOV.UK: fluorinated gases (F gases) (opens in a new tab)

GOV.UK

GOV.UK: WEEE regulations (opens in a new tab)

GOV.UK

GOV.UK: WEEE — guidance (opens in a new tab)

GOV.UK

GOV.UK: F gas — guidance for users, producers and traders (opens in a new tab)

GOV.UK

Which repair services regulations apply to your business

What you need to do

Run a safe business and employ people

Meet your f-gas and WEEE duties if they apply

Confirm you have covered everything

Legal basis

Official guidance

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