Guide
LEV testing frequency: the 14 month COSHH interval
Updated
The interval most people quote as annual is actually 14 months, and shorter for four listed processes. Here is the 14 month LEV rule as the regulation words it.
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The general interval: at least once every 14 months
Regulation 9(2) of the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 requires the employer to ensure that engineering controls are thoroughly examined and tested. For local exhaust ventilation plant that means at least once every 14 months.
Where the plant is used with a process specified in Column 1 of Schedule 4, it is not more than the interval in Column 2 (legislation.gov.uk).
HSE's LEV guidance frames the same duty as keeping the system in efficient working order, plus a periodic thorough examination and test at least every 14 months (hse.gov.uk).
14 months, not 12. The extra two months exist so a site can keep testing in the same part of its year without ever drifting out of date. Most maintenance planners still book at 12 months to leave slack, which is sensible rather than required.
The Schedule 4 processes with shorter intervals
| Process (Column 1) | Maximum interval (Column 2) |
|---|---|
| Blasting carried out in or incidental to the cleaning of metal castings, in connection with their manufacture | 1 month |
| Jute cloth manufacture | 1 month |
| Processes, other than wet processes, in which metal articles other than of gold, platinum or iridium are ground, abraded or polished using mechanical power, in any room for more than 12 hours in any week | 6 months |
| Processes giving off dust or fume in which non-ferrous metal castings are produced | 6 months |
Wording condensed from Schedule 4 to the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (legislation.gov.uk). If your process is not in that Schedule, the 14 month interval applies.
The interval is a maximum, not a target
- The overriding duty in regulation 9(1) is to keep the plant in an efficient state, in efficient working order, in good repair and in a clean condition. A system that fails between tests has to be dealt with then, not at the next examination.
- A change of process, a new hood or a modified duct run changes what the system is meant to do, so it needs checking against the new intended performance rather than waiting out the 14 months.
- Interim checks by your own maintenance staff (airflow indicators, filter condition, damper positions) are how most sites catch problems early. They do not replace the statutory examination and test.
Keeping the record
Regulation 9(4) requires the employer to keep a suitable record of every examination, test and repair, for at least 5 years from the date it was made. In practice that record, along with the commissioning data, is the file an HSE inspector asks for first.