Anyone can buy a spray from a hardware shop and call it pest control, but a professional company handling and storing pesticides in bulk is operating under a different legal framework entirely. If you’re choosing between quotes, it’s worth knowing what HSE actually expects a legitimate pest control business to have in place before it ever turns up at your door – because it tells you a lot about whether you’re dealing with a properly run operation.
Two separate sets of rules apply
Professional pesticide use in Great Britain sits under two overlapping requirements: HSE’s specific guidance on storing pesticides (document AIS16, “Guidance on storing pesticides for professional users”), and the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH), which apply whenever a business transports, stores or uses pesticides as part of its work. AIS16 is built to sit alongside COSHH duties and the relevant Defra codes of practice, rather than replace them – a company that only follows one is not actually compliant.
What “proper storage” actually means
HSE’s guidance recognises that pest control businesses store chemicals in different ways depending on their size and how they work, and it sets standards for each: fixed stores, which can be purpose-built stores, converted existing buildings or parts of buildings, or small-scale storage in cabinets and chests; mobile stores, used for short-term storage away from the company’s base (typically in a van); and additional precautions specifically for storing small amounts of the more hazardous pesticides. None of these categories is a free pass – each comes with its own expectations around security, ventilation and preventing spillage or unauthorised access, which is why a technician turning up with chemicals loose on the passenger seat of an unmarked van is a legitimate reason to ask questions.
Why COSHH assessments matter for every product used
Under COSHH, a proper risk assessment is required for every product a business actually uses, not just a generic policy covering “chemicals” as a category. That assessment is meant to be driven directly by the product’s label and its Safety Data Sheet, covering how it’s handled, what protective equipment is needed, and how exposure is controlled – both for the technician doing the work and for anyone in the property while it happens. A company that can’t explain, in plain terms, what precautions apply to the specific product being used in your home is skipping a step that COSHH treats as mandatory rather than optional.
What this means for a homeowner comparing quotes
You’re not expected to audit a pest control company’s storage facility, but you are entitled to ask direct questions before treatment: what product is being used, whether a COSHH assessment exists for it, and how it will be stored or transported to and from your property on the day. A company operating properly under AIS16 and COSHH should be able to answer all three without hesitation, because the paperwork already exists internally – it isn’t something they have to create specially for your enquiry.
Red flags worth noticing
Vague answers about “professional-strength” products with no named active ingredient, technicians unwilling to show a product label or safety data sheet, and pesticides left accessible in an unlocked vehicle are all signs that storage and COSHH obligations may not be taken seriously. None of this guarantees a company is unsafe, but it’s a reasonable basis for choosing a different quote, particularly in a household with children, pets, or anyone with respiratory sensitivities.
Why storage matters even after the treatment is finished
It’s easy to assume the storage question is only relevant to the pest control company’s own premises, but it’s also relevant to what happens on the day of your treatment specifically. A technician who brings only the product needed for that visit, keeps it in its original, correctly labelled container, and doesn’t leave excess product on site afterward is following the same underlying storage principles AIS16 sets out for the business as a whole – just applied to a single job. If a technician leaves unlabelled containers, decanted product, or leftover chemical anywhere accessible in your home or garden after a visit, that’s a storage lapse happening in front of you, not just an abstract warehouse compliance issue.
What this looks like for a household with specific sensitivities
Households with young children, pets, or anyone with asthma or chemical sensitivities have a genuine reason to push these questions further than a general enquiry. Asking specifically how long a product needs to be left undisturbed after application, whether pets or children need to be kept out of a treated area for a defined period, and what ventilation is recommended afterward are all reasonable follow-up questions that a company properly following COSHH assessments for its products should already have clear, specific answers to, rather than a vague reassurance that “it’s perfectly safe.”
The bottom line
Pesticide storage isn’t just a warehouse issue for pest control companies – HSE’s AIS16 guidance and COSHH duties apply to how chemicals are held, transported and used on every job, including the one in your home. Asking a company to show it takes both seriously is a fair and reasonable question before you let anyone treat your property.
Sources
- Health and Safety Executive, “Guidance on storing pesticides for farmers and other professional users” (AIS16) – hse.gov.uk/pubns/ais16.htm