Legal & Compliance Library

Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998

Requires work equipment to be suitable, well maintained, and used only by people who have received adequate information, instruction and training.

Scope

Covers the equipment, not just the guard

PUWER covers the selection, suitability, maintenance and safe use of work equipment as a whole, with guarding of dangerous parts as one part of a broader duty.

The whole equipment lifecycle

Duty

Applies to whoever controls the equipment

The duty sits with any employer or person in control of work equipment used at work, not only the manufacturer or the operator.

Control, not just ownership

Practice

Checks and training, both on record

Good PUWER practice generally means equipment checks and the training or authorisation of the people using that equipment are both kept, and kept together.

Checks and training, together

This page is an educational, plain-English summary — it is not legal advice and must not be relied on as a substitute for the legislation itself or advice from a competent person. Always refer to the official source for the authoritative text.

What it covers

PUWER covers the selection, suitability, maintenance, inspection and safe use of work equipment, including guarding of dangerous parts.

Who it applies to

Any employer or person in control of work equipment used at work.

How SafetyOps supports compliance

SafetyOps' PUWER centre and Equipment Register keep guarding and equipment-check records connected to the same asset history.

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