[5] Differences between the pieces of legislation included a reduction in the threshold for hearing and protection and the introduction of noise control.

[7] The regulations are one of a number of Health and Safety pieces of legislation that require the 'suitable and sufficient' assessment of risks to employees as a result of work activities.

By law the employer has to assess the 'noise problem' at work then a risk assessment would need to be carried out and plan put in place for how to deal with it: In October 2011 a factory in Burnley which manufactured flooring surfaces for horse riding centers was fined £16,000 after it failed to put practical measures in place to comply with an improvement notice from a specialist Health and Safety Executive (HSE) inspector.

[8] The staff at the factory worked several hours a day near a granulator machine, which shredded material into tiny pieces and which was "as loud as a chainsaw".

"[8] Speaking on the dangers of exposure to noise he said "Noise-induced hearing loss is a degenerative condition and the ear cannot repair itself.