Steel toe cap boots are one of the easiest and most inexpensive ways of protecting employee’s feet at work. The simple design would protect your feet from a number of different accidents. There is a duty upon your employer to provide personal protective equipment, or PPE, to their employees when it would protect them from injury. It would fall within Personal Protective Equipment Regulations 1992 and outlined below is what your employers should be doing.
Who should purchase the steel toe cap boots?
If your health and safety is in question at work your employer should provide steel toe cap boots. You should not be paying for PPE, or steel toe capped boots, if your safety is in question. Steel toe capped boots would obviously be necessary for construction jobs or jobs involving lifting, carrying or moving in a place involving heavy lifting.
Your employer should ensure that the boots are suitable, i.e. they are steel toe capped if they will ensure a certain level of safety.
It is your employer’s duty to inform you of the risks which the steel toe cap boots are used to protect you from and any action the employee must take to maintain them.
How do I know if the equipment is safe?
The manufacturer must guarantee a certain level of quality in the steel toe capped boots. If this is approved, a CE mark will be present on the product.
When it comes to the maintenance and replacement of the boots, the duty for this is also for this is also on your employer. You are not expected to maintain them yourself.
What if the steel toe capped boots my employer provided is not suitable?
If your steel toe capped boots are defective then you should report this to your employer immediately. If you are injured because they are not suitable or effective, this may pave the way to making a work injury compensation claim.
When can you claim?
If you are not provided with boots when you should have been provided with them, or if they are not suitable or poorly maintained resulting in an injury, you may be able to claim from your employer.
We offer 100% compensation agreements so don’t hesitate to contact us for free and friendly advice!
