Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995
When carrying out a routine programmed health and safety visit, one of the first health and safety documents that I will ask to see is your accident record book.
The book will provide me with invaluable information on the frequency and type of accidents that have occurred at your business premises and will also help you to identify any trends, such as frequent slips or trips etc.
A properly completed accident record book will also provide a wealth of information on how you have dealt with the accident. Have you followed up on the root cause of the accident so as to prevent it re-occurring or has any additional employee training been identified and provided?
For a more serious incident or dangerous occurrence, as the employer, you may need to record the accident in a more formal way, because it may be a 'RIDDOR' reportable accident under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995.
In the last few months, a number of changes have been introduced to the way RIDDOR injuries and incidents are now reported to the HSE (Health and Safety Executive).
From 12th September 2011, only fatal and major injuries can be reported by telephone to the HSE Contact Centre (Tel. 0845 300 9923). All other work-related injuries and incidents reportable under RIDDOR must now be reported via one of a suite of seven online forms available on the HSE's website – www.hse.gov.uk/riddor
From 30th September, the HSE's 'Infoline', which provided a basic information service to callers, ended. The HSE website has proved to be the more popular option for accessing health and safety information. Various improvements have now been made to the HSE website which will assist in answering any questions you may have regarding health and safety related matters.
From 6th April 2012, subject to Parliamentary approval, the over three day injury reporting requirement will change. Employers with responsibility under RIDDOR must still keep a record of all over three day injuries but, the reporting requirement will increase from over three days' to over seven days' consecutive incapacitation (not counting the day on which the accident occurred). The deadline by which the over seven day injury must be reported to the relevant enforcement authority will increase to 15 days from the date of the accident.
If you remain unsure as to what your obligations are in this area, please feel free to contact Ceredigion County Council's Health and Safety team on Tel. 01545 572105.