Reportable Accidents and Dangerous
Occurrences
F2.3
Introduction
There are clearly defined legal requirements for the reporting of specified types of accident,
diseases, and dangerous occurrences to the Health and Safety Executive. These are
contained in Reporting of Injuries, Diseases, and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995,
commonly known as RIDDOR.
The list below indicates the more common types of injury, disease, or dangerous occurrences
that require reporting. Please note that the lists are not exhaustive. Further detailed information
is available in the Regulations and Everyone’s Guide to RIDDOR ’95 – HSE 31.
Death and Reportable Injuries:
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Death
Fracture, other than to fingers, thumbs and toes.
Amputation
Dislocation of the shoulder, knee, hip or spine.
Loss of sight, temporary or permanent
Chemical or hot metal burn to the eye or any penetrating injury to the eye
Injury from electric shock or electrical burn, leading to unconsciousness or requiring
resuscitation; or requiring admittance to hospital for more than 24 hours
Any other injury: leading to hypothermia, heat-induced illness or unconsciousness; or
requiring resuscitation; or requiring admittance to hospital for more than 24 hours
Unconsciousness caused by asphyxia or exposure to harmful substance or biological agent
Acute illness requiring medical treatment, or loss of consciousness arising from absorption of
any substance by inhalation, ingestion or through the skin
Absence from work for more than 3 consecutive days, following an injury at work.
Reportable Dangerous Occurrences:
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Collapse, overturning, or failure of load-bearing parts of lifts or lifting equipment
Explosion, collapse or bursting of any closed vessel or associated pipe work
Plant or equipment coming into contact with overhead lines
Electrical short circuit or overload causing fire or explosion
Collapse or partial collapse of a scaffold over 5 metres high, or erected near water where there
could be a risk of drowning after a fall
Unintended collapse of: any building or structure under construction, alteration or demolition
where over 5 tonnes of material falls; a wall or floor in a place of works; any false work
Explosion or fire causing suspension of normal work for over 24hours
Sudden uncontrolled release in a building of: 100kg or more of flammable liquid; 10kg of
liquid above its boiling point; 10 kg or more of flammable gas; or 500 kg of these substances
if the release is in open air
Accidental release of any substance, which may damage health
Issue Date: July 2005
Issue Number: 3
Company Procedures Manual
Health and Safety Management System
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Reportable Accidents and Dangerous
Occurrences
F2.3
Reportable Diseases:
 Certain poisonings
 Some skin diseases, such as: occupational dermatitis, skin cancer, chrome ulcer, oil
folliculitis, or acne.
 Lung diseases, including occupational asthma, farmer’s lung’, pneumoconiosis, asbestosis
and mesothelioma
 Infections, such as: leptospirosis, hepatitis, tuberculosis, anthrax, legionellosis, and tetanus
 Other conditions, such as: occupational cancer, certain musculoskeletal disorders, and
hand-arm vibration syndrome
F2.3.1 Procedure for Implementation of RIDDOR 1995
i)
All Responsible Managers shall keep a camera available, with a day / date facility,
complete with film, in order to record accident scenes and dangerous occurrences.
ii)
Each Responsible Manager shall report all accidents and dangerous occurrences, which
may possibly be reportable under RIDDOR, to the Health and Safety Manager as soon
as possible.
Fatality, Major Injury or Dangerous Occurrence
i)
The Responsible Manager shall take immediate action to prevent disturbance of the
scene of the accident, unless it is necessary to ensure the rescue or safety of a person or
persons. The accident scene must remain undisturbed until the authority of the HSE has
been obtained or, failing this, for three days after notification of the accident to HSE.
ii)
Take photographs of the accident scene.
iii)
Inform the Health and Safety Manager or Advisor of the accident by telephone, as soon
as practical.
iv)
The Health and Safety Manager shall inform the HSE.
A Three Day Absence Accident
v)
Once it is known that an injured person will be absent from work for more than three
days, the Responsible Manager shall inform the Health and Safety Manager.
vi)
The Health and Safety Manager shall then inform the HSE.
vii)
The Health and Safety Manager shall retain the relevant documentation and send a copy
to the Responsible Manager.
Issue Date: July 2005
Issue Number: 3
Company Procedures Manual
Health and Safety Management System
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Occurrences
F2.3
NB
For the purpose of the legislation, ‘3 days’ does not include the day on which the accident
occurred but does include weekends and other days that would not have been working
days. For example, if a person normally works Monday to Friday and is injured on Friday
and returns to work on the following Wednesday, the Saturday and Sunday would have to
be counted. Therefore, the period of incapacity would be four days and would have to be
reported.
Assist Accident Investigation
viii)
The Responsible Manager must ensure nobody obstructs a thorough investigation of any
accident. If it is necessary to disturb the scene of the accident, the Responsible
Manager should take suitable photographs of the scene prior to any disturbance.
F2.3.2
i)
Procedures for the Convening of Internal Panels of Inquiry
The Health and Safety Manager shall ensure that every incident reported to HSE under
RIDDOR will be the subject of internal investigation.
Three Day Absence Accidents of Limited Significance
ii)
The Health and Safety Manager shall carry out a preliminary investigation to determine
the background causes of the accident and shall report the findings to the relevant
General Manager.
iii)
Upon receipt of the findings of the preliminary investigation, the General Manager shall
decide whether to convene a Panel of Inquiry.
iv)
If the General Manager determines that there is no useful purpose in convening a Panel
of Inquiry, the Health and Safety Manager shall prepare an Incident Report.
v)
The Health and Safety Manager shall submit the report to the Responsible Manager and
the General Manager.
vi)
Any recommendations resulting from the Incident Report shall be subject to the same
procedures as the recommendations of a Panel of Inquiry Report (see procedures F2.3.4
to F2.3.5).
Issue Date: July 2005
Issue Number: 3
Company Procedures Manual
Health and Safety Management System
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Reportable Accidents and Dangerous
Occurrences
F2.3
All Other Reportable Incidents
vii)
If a Panel of Inquiry is necessary, the General Manager shall ensure that it is convened as
soon as is practical after an incident and that the Panel of Inquiry is chaired in accordance
with the table below:
Incident Type
Panel Chairman
Fatal Accident
Director, Health and Safety
Work related Diseases
Director, Health and Safety
Major Injury Accident
General Manager
Notifiable Dangerous Occurrence
General Manager
Accident causing
more than 3
days incapacity to employee
Delegated by General
Manager to The Health and
Safety Manager.
viii)
The Chairman of the Panel of Inquiry shall determine the composition of the Panel. As a
minimum, the Chairman shall appoint the Responsible Manager and the Health and
Safety Manager (who may be Chairman in the case of 3-day injury accident).
ix)
In determining appointments to the Panel, the Chairman shall consider the actual and
potential seriousness of the incident and ensure that a commensurate level of experience
and expertise is available to the Panel.
x)
The Chairman may request the Health and Safety Manager to present a Preliminary
Report to the Panel. This report shall, so far as is practical, provide all available
information regarding the incident, and shall avoid pre-empting the role of the Panel, by
reaching conclusions or making recommendations.
xi)
The Chairman shall determine the location and timing of the Panel of Inquiry hearing(s).
xii)
The first hearing of the Panel of Inquiry shall convene within one month of the incident.
Should it not be possible to hold a full hearing of the Panel of Inquiry within this period
because, for example, an important witness to the incident is unavailable, then the
Chairman shall convene a preliminary meeting of the Panel within this period. The
conclusions resulting from this preliminary meeting shall be minuted, together with agreed
proposals for further panel meetings.
xiii)
The Panel of Inquiry shall confine its discussion to the factual aspects of the incident and
those conclusions and recommendations to prevent occurrences, which result from the
investigation. It shall not concern itself with disciplinary matters.
Issue Date: July 2005
Issue Number: 3
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Health and Safety Management System
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Reportable Accidents and Dangerous
Occurrences
F2.3.4
F2.3
Procedure for the Compilation and Distribution of Panel of Inquiry
Reports
i)
The Chairman of the Panel of Inquiry shall produce and circulate the Panels’ findings to
the Panel Members, the General Manager, and the Director, Health and Safety.
ii)
The following information will, where applicable, be contained in each Panel of Inquiry
Report:
a) A title specifying the type of Incident the person, or persons injured, the place of work
and the date of the accident
b) A list of the Members of the Panel
c) The date(s) of the Panel of Inquiry investigations
d) A factual description of the accident
e) Appropriate background information
e) Findings
f) Conclusion
g) Recommendations, to prevent a recurrence of the accident, where appropriate, the
report should indicate timescales for the implementation of recommendations.
h) Appropriate appendices i.e. Photographs and Copies of relevant documents referred
to in the main body of the text.
F2.3.5
Procedure for Actions Following Issue of Panel of Inquiry Reports
i)
Upon receipt, the General Manager shall discuss the Report with the Panel Chairman
and reach agreement on the Recommendations.
ii)
Responsibility for implementing the Recommendations of the Panel of Inquiry passes to
the Responsible Manager.
iii)
The General Manager shall monitor the progress on the implementation of the
Recommendations.
The Responsible Manager shall keep a record of all actions taken to implement the
Recommendations of the Panel of Inquiry report and shall file this record together with
their copy of the Panel of Inquiry Report.
iv)
Issue Date: July 2005
Issue Number: 3
Company Procedures Manual
Health and Safety Management System
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