What the Arbowet actually requires
Article 15 of the Arbowet places three obligations on the employer. First: maintain effective in-house emergency-response capability. Second: designate one or more BHV-officers for that purpose. Third: ensure those officers are properly trained and equipped — and that the trained capacity is sufficient given the workplace's risks, size, and layout.
The Arbobesluit and Arbobeleidsregel detail the training content and the link to the workplace risk inventory and evaluation (RI&E). The number of BHV-officers is not fixed by law but follows from the RI&E, the size of the workplace, and the working hours covered.
What BHV covers
BHV combines four operational competencies. First aid — basic life support, bleeding control, casualty management until professional services arrive. Fire prevention and initial response — recognition, small-fire suppression, alarm activation. Evacuation — the safe controlled exit of staff and visitors during alarm conditions. Communication and coordination — internal alerting, external service liaison, and incident reporting.
BHV is not the fire brigade. It is the in-house bridge between the moment something happens and the arrival of professional emergency services. The standard expectation is that BHV-officers stabilise the situation for the first minutes; the professional services then take over.
Who needs to be trained
Every workplace requires BHV capacity, but the size of the trained team scales with risk and headcount. A small office with low fire load may operate with two trained officers per shift. A factory, hospitality venue, or hospitality establishment with a complex layout and large public flow needs a larger and more practiced team.
Refresher training is required at least annually for most BHV-officer roles. Sites with elevated risk profiles often refresh more frequently or run additional in-house drills.
How to keep your programme audit-ready
Three documents make most BHV audits straightforward. The current RI&E with its BHV addendum. The list of designated BHV-officers with their training records and refresher dates. The annual evacuation drill report — which should reflect a real, planned exercise, not a tick-box.
Programme owners should also confirm that the designated officers are actually present during operating hours. A BHV programme on paper that has nobody trained on the late shift is not a programme; it is a finding waiting to happen.