Posted By Paul Craythorne Michelle, It seems to me that your employer is attemting to comply with Reg 7 of the Management of Health & Safety at Work Regulations 1999 by appointing a 'competent' person from within the organisation to assist them in discharging their legal obligations. In doing so they are obliged to ensure that you are given adequate time to fulfill these duties. In addition, to be deemed 'competent' you will need to demonstrate that you have sufficient training, experience, knowledge and other qualities to properly undertake the role. To sum up, they may have given you the title 'Health & Safety Officer' but in reality, you are a credit controller with a responsibility for health & safety. As an ex-enforcement officer this is how I would view your position. If there were any uncertainty about your competence to carry out this role effectively or not enough time was being allocated, I would consider this to be the responsibility of the company and expect them to address the situation. To cover yourself, if you haven't already, get yourself on a recognised course such as the IOSH 'Managing Safely' course or better still, the NEBOSH Certificate. Also sit down with your employer and come to an agreement on a set number of hours per week to dedicate time to health & safety matters. I hope this is of some use to you and stop worrying. Regards, Paul