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Warning over poor-quality PPE and safety products
Katie Coyne Contributing Editor
It can be tricky to know if safety products are up to scratch. (Image: Dreamstime)
The British Safety Industry Federation (BSIF) has found the availability of non-compliant safety products is high.
BSIF found 85% of non-member products it tested failed to meet regulatory criteria.
Product examples included an indestructible safety trainer that failed the midsole penetration test, and cut-resistant gloves that did not pass the relevant cut test.
It also found a safety harness and lanyard provided without any user instructions or documentation.
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BSIF carried out tests on 127 non-member products in the 12 months to December 2022. This included checking compliance and whether they performed as advertised.
Just 18 products (15%) were fully compliant, and 108 (85%) failed to meet regulatory criteria.
BSIF CEO, Alan Murray said this was “concerning”. He added selling PPE and safety equipment comes with “complex responsibilities” and it can be hard for even "the most diligent suppliers to keep up with the rules and regulations".
He said: "We urge all buyers and specifiers to review their current processes and consider what assurances they have that the PPE and safety equipment they are being supplied with is fit for purpose.”
Murray argues this is rationale for sourcing safety products from a BSIF Registered Safety Supplier whose products are annually tested and audited.
In the 12 months to December 2022, 387 tests were carried out on Registered Safety Supplier products.
A total of 332 products (86%) passed immediately. The remaining 55 (14%) products that didn’t initially meet the test criteria have now been brought up to standard.
The November/December 2025 issue of Construction Management magazine is now available to read in digital format.
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