What Does an HSE Inspector Look For?

An HSE inspector looks at what is happening in your workplace and then at whether your paperwork reflects it. They will walk the site, speak to workers and ask to see the documents behind what they have seen: your risk assessments, your health and safety policy, training records, accident records and maintenance or inspection records for plant.

Inspections can be unannounced. They may follow a complaint, a RIDDOR report, or simply your sector being part of a planned programme.

What happens on the visit

Broadly, three phases.

The walk round. This usually comes first and it is the most important part. An inspector is looking at real conditions: guarding on machinery, work at height, housekeeping, storage of substances, traffic and pedestrian separation, welfare facilities, whether PPE is actually being worn and whether it is the right PPE.

Talking to people. Inspectors speak to workers, not just managers. They ask what the risks of the job are, what they have been told and what they would do if something went wrong. The answers tell an inspector more about your system than any document.

The paperwork. This usually comes last and it is used to test what they have already seen. If the walk round looked good and the documents back it up, the visit goes well. If the documents describe a workplace that does not exist, they will do you more harm than good.

What they typically ask to see

• Your health and safety policy, written down if you employ five or more people
• Risk assessments for the activities they have just watched
• COSHH assessments and safety data sheets for substances in use
• Training and competence records for the people doing the work
• Accident book and RIDDOR records
• Statutory examination and inspection records for plant and equipment, such as LOLER thorough examinations
• Evidence of consultation with employees
• For construction, the construction phase plan and the arrangements under CDM

What can follow

In rough order of severity:

• Verbal or written advice. No charge, no formal record against you.
• Notification of Contravention. A written notice that the inspector considers you to be in material breach. This is the trigger for cost recovery.
• Improvement notice. Requires you to put something right within a stated period, normally at least 21 days. You can appeal to an employment tribunal within 21 days. An appeal suspends an improvement notice but not a prohibition notice.
• Prohibition notice. Stops the activity, immediately or after a set time, where there is a risk of serious personal injury. This is the one that shuts work down.
• Prosecution. For the most serious breaches.

Fee for Intervention

If an inspector finds a material breach and issues a Notification of Contravention, HSE recovers its costs from you. The rate is £188 per hour from April 2026.

That covers all the time spent, not just the visit: identifying the breach, writing it up, any specialist input, the follow up correspondence and any return visits. A straightforward material breach commonly runs to several hundred pounds and a complex one into the thousands. If you are compliant, there is no charge. Fee for Intervention only applies to HSE. If your premises are inspected by the local authority, there is no equivalent charge, though the same enforcement notices can still be issued.

How to be ready

The honest answer is that you cannot prepare for an unannounced visit in the week before it happens, because the walk round is what it is. What you can do is make sure the documents match reality and can be produced quickly.

Practical steps:

• Know where everything is and make sure it is not only on one person's laptop
• Check your risk assessments describe the work as it is done now
• Make sure statutory inspection dates have not lapsed
• Make sure workers can say what the risks of their job are and what the controls are
• When an inspector arrives, ask to see their identification, have a named person accompany them, be cooperative and take notes of what is said and seen.
• Close out your own internal inspection findings, because an open action from six months ago is worse than never having looked

That last point matters more than people think. Finding a problem and fixing it demonstrates a working system. Finding it, writing it down and doing nothing is evidence against you.

How TalkHSE helps

TalkHSE gives you a workplace inspection tool for your own checks, with findings turned straight into tracked actions with owners and due dates, so nothing sits open without someone noticing. Your risk assessments, COSHH assessments, policies and training records sit in the same system with review dates and revision history, which means that when an inspector asks, you can produce a current document rather than hunt for it.

Frequently asked questions

Can HSE inspectors turn up without warning?

Yes. Inspectors have powers of entry and visits are often unannounced.

Do I have to let an HSE inspector in?

Yes. Inspectors have a legal right of entry to premises they have reason to believe are being used for work and obstructing an inspector is an offence.

How much does Fee for Intervention cost?

£188 per hour from April 2026, charged for the time taken to identify a material breach and help put it right. There is no charge if no material breach is found.

What is the difference between an improvement notice and a prohibition notice?

An improvement notice requires you to fix something within a set period and work can continue meanwhile. A prohibition notice stops the activity because of a risk of serious personal injury.

Who inspects my business, HSE or the council?

It depends on the type of premises. HSE covers construction, manufacturing, agriculture and similar. Local authorities cover most offices, shops, warehousing, hospitality and leisure.