CHAS application rejected? Here is what usually went wrong.

First: read the feedback line by line

A rejection is rarely a single problem. Assessors list every question that did not meet the standard. Copy each point into a list and answer them one at a time — resubmitting with half of them fixed usually comes straight back. Check the deadline in your portal for responding; letting it lapse can mean starting again and paying again.

1. A policy not reviewed in the last twelve months

Every mandatory policy needs a review date inside twelve months, a director's signature and evidence it was communicated to staff. A policy from three years ago with no review history fails on sight, even if nothing in the business has changed.

Fix: review, re-date and re-sign each policy, and record how staff were told — a toolbox talk sheet or email is enough.

2. Risk assessments that do not match your work

Assessors typically want site-specific risk assessments and COSHH assessments, dated within the last twelve months, for work you actually carry out. A downloaded pack covering trades you have never done is worse than nothing — it tells the assessor nobody read it.

Fix: submit assessments for your two or three highest-risk activities, with real site details and a signed briefing record. Our RAMS library is a quick starting point.

3. An expired insurance certificate

Employers' liability, public liability and professional indemnity where it applies. One lapsed date stops the whole submission.

Fix: ask your broker for the current schedules before you resubmit, and check the limits match what your clients ask for.

4. No accident and RIDDOR figures

You will usually be asked for three years of statistics, including nil returns. "We have never had an accident" is not an answer — the assessor wants the numbers and the recording system behind them.

Fix: produce a simple table by year — accidents, RIDDOR reportables, near misses — and show where the accident book lives.

5. No named competent health and safety advice

You need a named source of competent advice, their qualifications, and evidence of advice actually given. A certificate on the wall does not cover it.

Fix: name the person or provider, attach their credentials, and include one or two dated examples of advice they gave you.

6. A training matrix with no expiry dates

Cards and tickets listed without expiry dates read as unmanaged. The matrix has to show what expires when, and what happens before it does.

Fix: add an expiry column, highlight anything due in the next ninety days, and note who books the refreshers.

Want someone to check it before you resubmit?

Send us the assessor's feedback and your documents. We will tell you, free and within one working day, exactly what will still fail. If you want us to fix it, a full SSIP document build and resubmission is £595, with queries answered until it is resolved.

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