Guide

The CHAS document checklist

Applications fail on missing and generic paperwork more than anything else. Gather everything on this list before you open the application and you remove the main cause of delay.

The core set

1
Health and safety policySigned by the owner or a director, dated within 12 months, and specific to your trade. Three parts: statement of intent, organisation (named responsibilities), arrangements (how you control your actual risks). Legally required in writing once you employ five or more people, and expected by assessors regardless.
2
Risk assessmentsFor the activities your business genuinely carries out, naming the hazards of your trade and the controls you really use. See our electrician risk assessment guide for what good looks like.
3
Method statementsStep-by-step safe systems of work for your higher-risk activities. Together with risk assessments these are your RAMS.
4
COSHH assessmentsFor hazardous substances you use: dusts, solvents, sealants, adhesives. Match them to the products actually in your van.
5
Training and competence recordsQualifications, trade cards, first aid, asbestos awareness and refresher dates for every worker. A single matrix page is the clearest format.
6
Accident and incident recordsYour accident book format, RIDDOR reports if you have made any, and evidence that incidents are investigated and acted on. A clean record is fine; no system at all is not.
7
InsuranceCurrent employers' liability (a legal requirement if you employ anyone) and public liability certificates. Many buyers expect public liability cover of at least £5 million for construction work: check what your client requires.
8
Subcontractor arrangementsIf you use subcontractors: how you check their competence and insurance before they work for you.

The two checks that catch people out

First, dates. Assessors check that documents are current: a policy signed three years ago says your system is not live. Review dates on risk assessments matter for the same reason. Second, consistency. If your policy says you do not work at height and your method statement describes tower scaffolds, the assessor notices. Your documents must describe one coherent business.

The shortcut for electricians

Every item on this list, pre-written for electrical contracting with the personalisation points flagged in amber, is in the electrician CHAS pack. Prepare the whole submission in an evening instead of a fortnight.

For electrical contractors

Electrician CHAS pack · £95

Policy, five electrical RAMS, COSHH assessments, training matrix and registers, each mapped to what the assessor checks.

See what is inside

Common questions

What documents do I need for CHAS?

A signed, dated health and safety policy, risk assessments and method statements for your actual work activities, COSHH assessments where you use hazardous substances, training and competence records, accident and incident records, insurance certificates and, if you use subcontractors, evidence of how you vet them.

Does my policy need to be signed?

Yes. The policy must be signed by the owner or a director and dated within the last 12 months. An unsigned or old policy is one of the quickest routes to a referral.