The Father Christmas Risk Assessment.

I regularly represent HGV drivers after they have been injured, while out driving or more often when collecting or delivering loads. Christmas is normally the busiest time of the year for HGV drivers and it struck me recently that the role of a HGV driver is not that far removed from the role of Father Christmas, whose main job is delivering goods to children.

I often have to advise HGV drivers regarding the duties owed to them by their employers under the various regulations, so for a bit of Christmas fun I thought I would look at the risks faced by Father Christmas at work. To make things more straightforward I have assumed that Father Christmas is employed.

His employer should, first of all, carry out a risk assessment of all the tasks he does, which would undoubtedly identify the risk of injury due to the amount of manual handling he would have to do, so the Manual Handling Operations Regulations would need to be considered. The employer clearly cannot avoid Father Christmas having to lift anything, so they would have to take steps to reduce the risk of injury to the lowest level possible. Providing him with smaller sacks to carry the presents in would be a good start, so that he is not lifting too much weight at any one time.

Health and Safety Impact on Sleigh Riding

The sleigh would have to be considered in light of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations, which require it to be constructed or adapted as to be suitable for the purpose for which it is used or provided. When selecting it, the employer has to have regard to the working conditions and to the risks to the health and safety of Father Christmas while using it. I suspect that to comply with the regulations a fair few modifications to his current sleigh will be required.

The employer would certainly have to consider the Work at Height Regulations and would have great difficulty in complying with them, as access to buildings via chimneys is clearly not safe. Should it be a white Christmas, or an icy one, Father Christmas would certainly be at risk of slipping and falling, so the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations would also have to be considered.

Travelling at high speeds around the world in very cold conditions would also bring the Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations into play, and I doubt that a red jacket and black wellies would be considered appropriate PPE.

If Father Christmas is to be able to deliver all of the presents on time he will not have time to have much of a break, so his employer would be well advised to ask him to opt out of the Working Time Regulations.

Who knew that the job of Father Christmas was so hazardous?