Criminal Liability and the Penalties Clients Ignore
- Paul Scanlon
- Jul 30
- 1 min read
A CDM breach is not a fine on a balance sheet. For individuals, it can mean prison.
Compliance gets treated as a commercial risk. The regulations treat it as a criminal one.
Failure to comply with CDM 2015 can constitute a criminal offence.
For organisations, that means unlimited fines.
For individuals, it means unlimited fines and up to two years' imprisonment.
This is not theoretical. The HSE actively prosecutes CDM duty holders, and the courts have shown they will pursue named individuals, not just companies.
The client who signed nothing, checked nothing and assumed someone else had it covered is exactly the profile that ends up in front of an enforcement officer.
Directors carry personal exposure here. A breach attributable to your consent, connivance or neglect can be pursued against you directly.
Treating CDM as paperwork is a commercial decision with a criminal ceiling.
When did your board last review its personal exposure under CDM 2015 — not the company's, the directors'?
This post covers legal enforcement and penalties and is general information, not legal advice.
Get your free Client Guide to CDM 2015 here: cdm2015.co.uk/resource-download
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