Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa October 2014 | Page 48

LEGAL

BY ANTON KRAUSE

The Health & Safety Buck
Now it stops with the property owner

N

ew Construction Regulations under the
Occupational Health and Safety Act,
which aim to reduce accidents and injuries
to on-site workers, have significantly increased the
responsibilities of all property owners when appointing
contractors to do any work on their buildings and that
includes repairs, renovations and maintenance – in fact,
any work done by any contractor.
Although property owners have been given until
August 2015 to be fully compliant with the new
legislation, until then they’re still vulnerable to legal
repercussions if something goes wrong and a contractor
is injured on their property.

BUILDING OWNERS’
RESPONSIBILITIES

• Sourcing contractors who are suitably qualified and
competent to