Any business or organisation where people could be at risk of injury, Health and Safety regulations need to taken into account, this is very important. When researching COSHH Guidelines, I found this helpful pdf file online that explains the basic regulations of COSHH. See the link below:

Click to access COSHHRegulations.pdf

Public Liability Insurance 

PROTECTS AGAINST LAWSUITS AND BEING SUED FOR NEGLIGENCE.

Public liability insurance is important for your business because it will pay out in the event that a mistake is made which causes an injury to a member of the public or customer, or which damages their property.

Incidents where customers slip or trip over are among the most common accidents which can result in public liability insurance claims. For example, if a spill on a shop floor isn’t marked sufficiently with a warning sign, and a customer slips and becomes injured as a result, they may claim for compensation. Public liability insurance covers this cost for a business.

In this instance of being a free lance photographer means that if you are shooting on location and a model falls over and trips over on a electrical wire that you have left lying around and damages all her face, she could sue you for not thousands but also millions. This is something that you do not wish to happen.

If your business is responsible for injuring a member of the public – known as a third party, someone who is not an employee of your business – or for damage or destruction of their property, public liability insurance would cover your business for any related costs.

These costs could include compensation pay-outs, the cost of repairing damage, or legal expenses incurred in defending the case.

Public Liability Insurances means that this model could sue me however, my insurance would cover the cost of them suing me.

The minimum amount that you can take out for insurance is 1 million pounds.

The level of cover you will need depends on the risks involved with your business. You can take out insurance that will cover as little as £2m if your business has little interaction with the public, or as much as £10m if your business is high risk or involved with government contracts. The amount that you need depends on how much public interaction your business has.

The costs per year for having public liability insurance can vary from £300 to a few thousands depends on how big your business is.

For example if you are only covered for 1 million pounds worth of damage then you yearly costs would only be £300 but if you are covered for 10 million then your yearly cost could may be £2000.

Public Liability Insurance does not cover accidents which happen to you, your own property or any employees this also excludes your business’ equipment. This is covered by your business insurance policy or employers’ liability insurance, which is separate from public liability insurance. It covers anything from any accident that has happened from your causes of your business to a public person either a passer by or a model that you are photographing on location shoot. Public Liability covers if someone gets hurt on location or any property gets damaged whilst you as the photographer is shooting on location. 

It protects you against lawsuits – sued for negligence, putting right damage, medical claims, legal costs, loss of earnings of the person who was injured.

To make sure that I was fully aware of the Health and Safety issues that had to be taken into consideration when being a photographer, I successfully completed a risk assessment sheet for the studio, being a photography student I was already aware of some issues that I then identified the risk and then said what actions were required to make the risk no longer a hazardous issue.

Please see below my risk assessment sheet –

GENERAL RISK ASSESSMENT SHEET

NorthamptonCollege

 DATE 31st May TASK RISK ASSESS. Number

DESCRIPTION OF TASK

 Photography Studio 

REVIEW DATES

OR ACTIVITY

31/05/13

31/05/14

 31/05/15
PERSON(S) AT RISK No.
PRINT ASSESSOR(S) NAME(S) Kellie Houser EMPLOYEE
CONTRACTOR
PRINT ASSESSOR(S) TITLE Photographer VISITOR
PUBLIC/STUDENT

HAZARD IDENTIFIED

EXISTING CONTROLS

EXISTING TRAINING

RISK RATE

ACTION REQUIRED:- BY WHOM AND WHEN
Use of High Voltage appliances & changing bulbs if they are very hot after being on for a long amount of time (bulbs should only be changed by technician because they are so dangerous.) Supervision of use of studio.Control of procedures by staff or someone who knows how to move equipment appropriately and safely. Good practice in studio. Knowing that the bulbs get hot and only a technician can change the flash heads. 6 Plans already in place to create a ceiling system that the studio equipment i.e. all lighting will be hung on railing to keep it off the studio floor creating more floor space for students/staff using the equipment. This way there will be no carrying heavy equipment, no electrical wires loose on the floor and the bulbs because they would be up high could only be checked and changed by the studio technician specifically. This would also reduce the risk of breakages of studio equipment saving money for the college
Electrical wires on Floor  Taping the cables to the floor by using Gaffa tape to make sure it is taped down securely Knowing the appropriate rules when using the equipment in the studio. Not allowing wires to be in the way – potential hazard. 6
Carrying heavy/large equipment (power packs, reflective boards and lighting equipment i.e. Octagon soft box) Supervision, help and control when moving equipment. Always have a second person in the studio to be a helping hand. Induction to Health & Safety issues and good practice in studio. 6
Installing equipment (light stands, poles, tripods…of which require a balance of weight)  Supervision, help and control of procedures by staff. Knowing where to put the weights on the equipment to ensure that the equipment is secure and properly in place. 6

Likely hood of risk causing harm  x  How severe the harm is likely to be = RISK RATING

LIKELIHOOD OF RISK CAUSING HARM

HOW SEVERE IS THE HARM LIKELY TO BE

RISK RATING

RISK RATING – ACTION REQUIRED

1,2

 LOW, NON URGENT:-INFORM, MONITOR AND REVIEW
CERTAIN

4

 DEATH 4

3,4

 ACTION NEEDED:-CONTROL , INFORM, MONITOR
V. LIKELY

3

X

 SERIOUS 3

=

6

 ACTION NEEDED:-POSSIBLE WRITTEN PROCEDURE
LIKELY

2

 MEDIUM 2

8

 ACTION NEEDED:-DEFINITE WRITTEN PROCEDURE
UNLIKELY

1

 MINOR 1

9,12

 IMMEDIATE ACTION NEEDED:-STOP ASAP, RECTIFY

16

 IMMEDIATE SHUTDOWN:-STOP NOW
ASSESSORS: Kellie Houser Date 31/05/13 TEAM LEADERS
SIGNATURE SIGNATURE Date

ACTION PLAN            These sections relates to the remedial action required, who will do the work and should indicate a completion date.

Section One will relate to actions required that are within the ability, competence and authority of the assessor and can be completed

or organised using existing procedures and available budgets.

Section Two relates to risks identified by the assessor that they believe are beyond their ability or competence to rectify There may be many reasons

including financial constraints. Where this is the case the matter should be raised formally by the completion of section two, copies made and given to

the Head of Estates who together with the assessor will decide which course of action is appropriate with a suggested time scale.

Section One –  Risk Identified

Action Required

By Whom?

By When?
When the Octagon Soft box is moved in studio, the ceiling panels fall down as the ceiling is too low for the equipment used in the studio and could potentially hit a student or staff member in the head, badly injuring them. The ceiling needs to be fixed so that every single ceiling panel is very secure or the whole ceiling needs to be made higher so that the studio can be used to its full potential. Head of Estates/Maintenance of College. Technician of Studio ASAP.10/06/13

 

Section Two – Risk Identified

Action Required

By Whom?

By When?
High Voltage Bulbs being used and then getting extremely hot, potentially could seriously burn a student or member of staff. The bulbs need to have lights on to indicate when they are hot and when they have cooled down; so that people are aware not to touch or change the bulbs straight after they have been used. Better health and safety awareness and strictness in the studio. Technician of Studio. ASAP.Reminding Students/Staff constantly everyday
Signed    Kellie Houser Signed
Assessor Date 31/05/13 Supervisor Date