Health and safety adviser has been in sun too long

My heart sank when I read the health and safety dilemma and response in your regular legal Q&A column (5 September, Personnel Today).

Any ounce of personal responsibility or common sense is discarded as it appears that, on hot days, individuals in this example needed to be provided with an air-conditioned vehicle, long-sleeve shirts or sun cream. What’s also staggering is that a health and safety expert can find more than 250 words to respond to this ‘dilemma’.

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That burnt head I suffered in July when playing in a match for my tennis club plainly wasn’t my fault. Despite being one of the hottest days on record and, let’s be honest, being bald, I blame the club for not ensuring that adequate control measures were in place. Surely a hat at least should have been provided, factor 25 sunscreen or adequate shade in between matches. Come to think of it, it’s all my mother’s fault for carrying a defective bald gene. What chance did I have?

Tom Randle, head of HR, Europ Assistance Holdings