Action taken against TFL ULEZ guards not displaying their licence
Published 20 December 2023
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1. Request
Please advise what action you are taking against the dozens of SIA licence holders performing front line manned guarding of property (TfL ULEZ vans) but not displaying their licences.
2. Response
I can confirm that the SIA does hold this information.
Persons licensed by the Security Industry Authority are subject to the conditions of that licence. These conditions are published in our Get Licensed booklet, which can be found on our website here: SIA: Get Licensed. Conditions include that holders of front line licences must wear the licence where it can be seen at all times when engaging in designated licensable activity, unless the licence holder has reported the licence lost or stolen, or the SIA has the licence. However, a licence holder does not have to wear their licence where it can be seen if they can show that the work they are doing on that occasion requires that they should not be immediately identifiable as someone doing such security work. On such occasions, the licence holder must have their licence on them and provide it to a police constable or authorised person upon request.
The SIA takes all information that it receives about non-compliance with our regulation seriously and takes action in line with our enforcement approach, which you can find on our website. If we suspect an offence has been committed, prosecution is not our only option: we aim to encourage compliance with the law in the first instance and will do all we can to help people meet their obligations. As a UK regulator we are committed to the principles set out in the Legislative and Regulatory Reform Act (2006) and to the Regulators’ Code, a statutory code of practice for regulators. This means our activities are targeted only where action is needed and in a way that is transparent, accountable, proportional, and consistent.
We can confirm that in line with our published enforcement approach, we are actively working with both Transport for London and the security providers to ensure they understand the requirements of the Private Security Industry Act and individual licence conditions.
[Reference: FOI 0478]