Review of risk management and safety in the adventure and outdoor commercial sectors in New Zealand 2009/10
Progress report on proposed new regulations for adventure tourism and outdoor education operators
May 2011
Background
On 13 December 2010, Cabinet agreed that regulations be made under the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 requiring adventure tourism and outdoor education operators to be registered, after obtaining a safety audit from an accredited provider, before being able to provide defined types of adventure activities. Cabinet’s decisions were in response to a review of risk management and safety in the adventure and outdoor commercial sectors, which was led by the Department of Labour (the Department) during 2009/10.
What progress has been made?
The Department is working on new regulations now and expects those regulations to come into force on 1 October 2011.
As part of developing the new regulations, the Department is working on exactly which types of adventure tourism and outdoor education activities the new regulations should apply to. Cabinet agreed that the activities to be covered would be further defined when developing the regulations.
The Department is also working on a new accreditation scheme and safety audit standard for the safety audit providers who would like to provide safety audits under the new regulations.
When will I know if the new regulations apply to my business?
The Department expects to consult on the new regulations during July this year, but you will not know for certain whether the new regulations will apply to your business until they come into force. In the meantime, if the activities you offer are of the following type, the new regulations are likely to apply to them.
- They are provided by employers, principals and self-employed persons to the public in return for payment
- They are land- and water-based activities:
- that are services which consist of, or include, some element of instruction or leadership of the activity;
- where the object of the operation is to focus on the participants’ recreational or educational experience; and
- they are services in which participants are vulnerable to exposure to significant hazards associated with characteristics of the activity or the natural environment in which it is conducted.
The following activities are likely to be excluded:
- those offered by voluntary associations:
- to their members; or
- to the members of some other voluntary association pursuant to an agreement between the associations; or
- to persons who are not their members for the purpose only of encouraging interest in their activities or attracting new members, provided that such services shall not be provided, in respect of any one person, on more than twelve days in any period of twelve months;
- those offered by defined educational establishments:
- to their students; or
- to students of some other educational establishment pursuant to an agreement between the establishments; or
- to persons who are not their students for the purpose only of encouraging interest in their activities or attracting new students, provided that such services shall not be provided, in respect of any one person, on more than twelve days in any period of twelve months;
- transport services on public roads (e.g. scenic tours) or which use vehicles that meet safety standards and have drivers that are appropriately qualified and vetted;
- maritime transport activities carried out under the privileges of a maritime document (e.g. white water rafting and jet-boating);
- aviation activities covered by Adventure Aviation Rules;
- services in which instruction is given solely in connection with the supply of equipment for use in an activity;
- passenger ropeways covered by the Health and Safety in Employment (Pressure Equipment, Cranes, and Passenger Ropeways) Regulations 1999;
- activities covered by the Amusement Devices Regulations 1978, where a safety audit and certificate by a professional chartered engineer is required for registration.
When might I need to get a safety audit and be registered?
You do not need to do anything before 1 October this year.
Between 1 October and 31 December this year, you will need to provide the Department with the following prescribed information:
- name of business/organisation/sole trader offering the activity/activities;
- name of a contact person who can represent the business or organisation;
- phone number, and postal and email addresses for the contact person;
- description of all activities offered;
- physical location of all activities offered;
- evidence of any external safety audits that have already been obtained for the activities.
The Department will advertise widely how you should provide it with this information.
Between 1 January 2012 and 31 September 2014, the Department will gradually send operators a letter requesting that they commence an external safety audit from an accredited safety audit provider within a three-month period and complete it within six months of its commencement. The Department will start with operators offering the highest risk activities first. However, the Department will recognise existing safety audits from certain providers and will not ask operators who hold those safety audits to get new ones until their existing safety audits have expired.
If you are covered by the new regulations, you will need to obtain a safety audit from an accredited safety audit provider and be registered from nine months after receiving a request to do so from the Department, or 1 October 2014 (whichever is the earlier).
