Work Accidents: When do you need to report an accident at work?

Employers and self-employed people, as well as people in control of premises, must legally report certain types of accident to the Incident Contact Centre of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

All of the kinds of injuries listed below need to be reported if they happen to an employee, a self-employed person or a member of the public, if their injury happened while they were on the premises. The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995 (RIDDOR), places a legal duty to report:

Work-related deaths

If an employee, a self-employed person working on the premises, or a member of public is killed, this must be reported straight away.

Major injuries

Some types of serious injuries should be reported to the HSE.   

The injuries you need to report are:

• Asphyxia or exposure to a harmful substance which causes unconsciousness
• Acute illnesses needing medical treatment, or loss of consciousness resulting from exposure to a biological agent or absorption of any harmful substance through ingestion, inhalation or through the skin
• Dislocated shoulders, hips, knees or spine
• Chemical or hot metal burns, or any other penetrating injuries to the eye
• Electrical shocks or burns which lead to unconsciousness or need resuscitation or hospital admission for over 24 hours
• Any injury leading to hypothermia, unconsciousness or a heat-related illness, any injury requiring resuscitation or hospital admission for over 24 hours
• Broken/fractured bones, other than fingers, thumbs and toes
• Amputations

Over-three-day injuries

If a work-related injury leads to the injured person having to take more than three days off work, or leaves them unable to perform their usual duties for more than three days, this needs to be reported.

Work-related diseases

As well as injuries, certain types of diseases need to be reported. These include:

• Certain musculoskeletal disorders, hand-arm vibration syndrome, work-related cancer and decompression illness
• Serious infections like tetanus, legionellosis, anthrax, tuberculosis, hepatitis and leptospirosis
• Lung diseases like work-related asthma, mesothelioma, asbestosis, farmer's lung and pneumoconiosis
• Some skin diseases like work-related dermatitis, chrome ulcer, oil folliculitis/acne and skin cancer

Dangerous occurrences (near miss accidents)

There are a range of dangerous incidents which should be reported, even if they did not actually injure anyone. If an incident occurred which could, potentially, have caused severe human injury or illness, it should be reported.

Making a claim for compensation

If you have suffered a serious accident at work which wasn’t your fault, and it was so serious that it needed to be reported to the Health and Safety Executive, you may be able to claim compensation for your injury. Your company will be insured for compensation claims and you will be able to claim on a ‘no win, no fee’ basis.

Many people find the period after a work accident can be hard, with potential recuperation costs and loss of earnings leaving them badly out of pocket. With a no win, no fee compensation claim, some of these concerns following a work accident can be alleviated. Remember: you cannot be fired for making a personal injury claim against your employer.