When is a health and safety coordinator mandatory?

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Accepted Answer

A health and safety coordinator must be appointed whenever more than one employer or subcontractor is present on the same construction area. The exception is narrow: excluding work that requires notification, and only where none of the Annex 2 high-risk works is present, a coordinator need not be appointed. So the exception requires both staying under the threshold and staying entirely clear of the high-risk list; if either fails, appointment is mandatory. The rule If more than one employer or subcontractor works on the same construction area, a coordinator is appointed. The measure is the number of firms on site, not the size of the job. The exception has two conditions The work must not be notifiable (30 working days + 20 workers, or 500 person-days). None of the Annex 2 high-risk works may be present. If both are not satisfied the exception does not apply. The most common mistake is looking only at the first condition and skipping appointment because the job is "small". Two coordinators The regulation recognises a preparation stage and a construction stage. One person may hold both; but the construction-stage role is to keep the plan current and coordinate the parties — it does not substitute for the decisions taken while the project is designed. Appointment does not transfer duty Appointing a coordinator does not remove the employer's own duties. The coordinator is an additional safeguard, not an address to which responsibility moves.

Obligation	Legal basis	How the page covers it
Where more than one employer or subcontractor is present on the same construction site, the employer or the project supervisor must assign one or more health and safety coordinators.	Regulation on OHS in Construction Work, art. 8(1)	The rule: the measure is the number of firms on site, not the size of the job.
A health and safety coordinator need not be assigned where the work is outside the notification thresholds and none of the risks listed in Annex 2 is present on the site.	Regulation on OHS in Construction Work, art. 8(3)	The exception has two conditions and does not operate unless both are met.
Notification threshold: work lasting more than 30 working days with more than 20 workers employed continuously, or work requiring more than 500 person-days.	Regulation on OHS in Construction Work, art. 8(4)	First condition of the exception: the 30-day/20-worker or 500 person-day threshold must not be exceeded.
The duties of health and safety coordinators in the project preparation stage and in the project execution stage are regulated separately.	Regulation on OHS in Construction Work, arts. 10 and 11	Two separate coordinators: the regulation recognises a preparation stage and an execution stage.
Assigning a coordinator does not remove the responsibilities of the project supervisor or the employer, and the coordinators performing their own duties does not affect the responsibility of subcontractors.	Regulation on OHS in Construction Work, art. 6(2)-(3)	Assignment does not transfer the duty: the coordinator is an extra safeguard, not an address that responsibility moves to.

Obligation	Legal basis	How the page covers it
The client or the project supervisor shall appoint one or more coordinators for safety and health matters for any construction site on which more than one contractor is present.	Directive 92/57/EEC, art. 3(1)	The rule: the measure is the number of firms on site.
Member States may, after consulting both sides of industry, allow derogations from the plan requirement, except where the work involves particular risks as listed in Annex II.	Directive 92/57/EEC, art. 3(2), second paragraph	Second condition of the exception: none of the high-risk activities may be present on the site.

When is a health and safety coordinator mandatory?

The rule

The exception has two conditions

Two coordinators

Appointment does not transfer duty

Legal basis

Türkiye — obligations and their legal basis

European Union — obligations and their legal basis

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When is a health and safety coordinator mandatory?

The rule

The exception has two conditions

Two coordinators

Appointment does not transfer duty

Related answers

Legal basis

Türkiye — obligations and their legal basis

European Union — obligations and their legal basis

Manage this in Optifora