If you employ anyone, rent out property, or control premises that are not a private home, the answer is almost certainly yes: the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and ACOP L8 put the duty on you. The harder question is usually what kind of assessment your situation needs — a simple self-assessment you write down and keep, or a competent assessor. This checker separates the two before you spend time or money. For the longer written answer, see do I need a legionella risk assessment?.
Your verdict
Email me the free template
The ACOP L8 risk assessment template, straight to your inbox — the structure your assessment and records slot into.
This checker works out whether the duty is likely to apply and a sensible next step. It is not a legionella risk assessment, and it does not confirm that any water system is safe or compliant.
How the checker decides
The duty to assess legionella risk comes from the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, with ACOP L8 and HSG274 setting out what meeting it looks like. The duty lands on whoever is in control: employers, the self-employed who run premises, and landlords in relation to their tenants. So the first three questions look for a duty trigger. The last two look for complications — a shared water system splits responsibility between occupiers, landlords and managing agents, and vulnerable occupants raise the bar for who should carry out the assessment.
| Situation | Does the duty apply? | Usual next step |
|---|---|---|
| You rent out a single house or flat | Yes | A competent self-assessment of a simple system, written down and kept — the free template is built for this. |
| You run a small office, shop or salon | Yes | Self-assessment is usually reasonable for a simple system. The Risk Assessment Builder structures it. |
| You own a flat in a block with a communal tank | Yes, but split | Responsibility may sit with the freeholder or managing agent. Pin it down in writing before assessing anything. |
| You run a care home or premises with vulnerable people | Yes | Use a competent assessor, usually an LCA-registered company. |
| You live in your own home and employ nobody | No | ACOP L8 aims at work and commercial settings. Sensible maintenance still applies, but there is no assessment duty. |
Wherever the duty applies, the assessment only counts if it is written down and the records are kept — for at least five years. If your situation changes (you take on staff, let the property out, extend the water system), the answer changes with it, so revisit the question rather than assuming the old answer still holds.
Important
This checker is general guidance, not advice on your specific circumstances. Where responsibility is shared, unclear, or the people exposed are more vulnerable to infection, use a competent assessor — usually one working for a Legionella Control Association registered company. This site does not provide medical advice.