§ Mrs. RoeTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) what her estimate is of the number of construction and roofing companies working without employers' liability insurance; [102322]
(2) what information she has given to members of the public about the risks of exposure to the activities of construction companies that are involved in accidents without employers' liability insurance. [102324]
§ Mr. WilsonThe HSE is responsible for ensuring compliance with ELI rules. Non-compliance is monitored by means of periodic checks undertaken by Workplace Contacts and HSE's Health and Safety Inspectors. Their estimate for non-compliance based on the level of notices to produce and prosecutions for all employers, not just construction and roofing contractors, under employers' liability compulsory insurance HELC—is low, less than 1 per cent. A breakdown of this figure for construction and roofing firms is not available.
Employers' liability insurance relates to the cost of compensating workers for injury or illness which their employer is liable for. It has no direct relevance to third parties such as members of the public.