Substandard high visibility clothing putting lives at risk
High-visibility clothing that is not fit for purpose is widely available at retailers across England - 9th March 2009
Substandard high-visibility clothing worn in the
workplace is increasing the risk of workers being
involved in
accidents at work where people fail to
see them.
The
'Health and Safety Bulletin' (HSB) publication
has found that some major retailing chains in
England have been selling the inadequate
high-visibility clothing, which has been brought to
the attention of
the Department for Business, Enterprise and
Regulatory Reform (BERR) who have said they will
fund investigation in to these claims.
The Reflective
Equipment Manufacturers Association (REMA)
purchased the high-visibility clothing that was
tested in a dozen local authorities throughout
England in 2007 and 2008.
The tests showed some of the clothing only measured
a 4 candelas on the reflective scale, with European
Standard for high-visibility clothing for
professional use (EN471) stating that 330 candelas
should be achieved.
This is unwelcome news for thousands of workers who
believe they are wearing the correct high-visibility
garments, but are unknowingly at an increased risk
of workplace accidents through inadequate clothing.
The Health and
Safety Executive (HSE) are responsible for
enforcing whether workers wear
personal protective
equipment (PPE) or not, the supply and standards
issues are regulated by BERR.
