Question 1

A Master delegates day-to-day implementation of a risk assessment's control measures to the Chief Officer, who later departs from one of those measures under operational pressure without informing the Master. Does delegating the implementation shield the Master from legal exposure if this is later examined?

Accepted Answer

Not entirely — while delegation is expected and the day-to-day implementation may properly sit with the Chief Officer, the Master retains overall responsibility for health and safety management on board, and the adequacy of the Master's oversight of that delegation may itself come under scrutiny Delegation of day-to-day duties is normal and expected, but the Master's overall responsibility for health and safety management doesn't simply disappear with it — in examining a case, both the officer's specific decision and the adequacy of the Master's broader oversight of how delegated duties were being carried out may be relevant.

Question 2

A cadet is told that risk assessment on board isn't just one document but happens at four different levels, including something as informal as a quick personal check before starting a task. What are these four levels, broadly?

Accepted Answer

Generic risk assessments (company-level), task-based risk assessments (onboard, specific to the job), toolbox talks (discussing the assessment with those doing the work), and personal/dynamic assessment (an individual's ongoing informal check while working) COSWP describes a four-level structure: generic risk assessments set by the company, task-based risk assessments (TBRA) carried out onboard for specific jobs, toolbox talks that walk the team through the TBRA before work starts, and personal/dynamic risk assessment carried out informally by the individual as work proceeds.

Question 3

An OOW is about to lead a small team in a non-routine, high-risk job — entry into a void space that hasn't been entered in months. A generic company risk assessment exists for enclosed space entry in general. What additional level(s) of assessment does the OOW need before this specific job can proceed?

Accepted Answer

A task-based risk assessment specific to this entry and these personnel, followed by a toolbox talk walking the team through its findings before work begins Generic risk assessments don't capture ship- and task-specific factors at the time of the job — a non-routine, high-risk task like this needs its own task-based risk assessment, with a toolbox talk to brief the team on its findings before starting.