What does RIDDOR stand for?
RIDDOR stands for The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations and applies to every workplace in the UK. It requires you to keep records of any work-related accidents and diseases as well as covering dangerous occurrences and near-misses.
- 693,000 workers sustained injuries in 2019/2020, 111 fatally
- 32.5 million working days lost due to work-related illness and workplace injury
- £16.2 billion cost of injuries and ill health from current working conditions
**Data above from Alcumus (RIDDOR Reporting – Making Sure Your Employees are Safe and Your Business is Compliant – Alcumus)
Why do I need to know about RIDDOR?
As an employer, no matter what your size, you have a legal obligation to report certain serious workplace accidents, occupational diseases and specified dangerous occurrences which fall under RIDDOR.
Who reports?
Only ‘responsible persons’ are require to submit reports under RIDDOR – have you thought about who that might be in your company?
If self-employed and working on a client’s premises, your client should report matters. If working on your own premises, you should make the report.
Employees do not have a legal responsibility to report incidents under RIDDOR. However, if employees witness or experience something that they are concerned would fall under RIDDOR, they should report it to an appropriate supervisor.
What is reportable under RIDDOR and when do I need to report?
For most types of incidents, the ‘responsible party’ must notify the authority as soon as possible – this is most easily done by completing the form online.
- Injuries, fatalities and dangerous occurrences should be reported immediately and as a maximum must be reported within 10 days.
- Accidents that result in the incapacitation of workers for over seven days must be reported within 15 days from the day of the incident.
- In occupational diseases, a report of the diagnosis should be sent without delay.
Reports are made directly to the HSE and all incidents can be reported using one of the standard online RIDDOR forms which they have available on the website.
There is also a telephone service provided for reporting fatal, specified and major incidents only – this is the Incident Contact Centre and can be reached on 0345 300 9923 – opening hours Monday to Friday 8.30am to 5pm.
More information on when and how to report very serious or dangerous incidents can be found by visiting the HSE ways to contact HSE webpage.
Record Keeping
It is vitally important that you keep a log of any incidents or work-place injuries that occur without your business to comply with RIDDOR. You should ensure that you have an accident book available, it is an essential document where you can record and report details of any work-related injuries or accidents which may occur and ensures you are complying with legal requirements.
To assist you to determine which incidents may or may not be reportable the HSE has a very handy online list:
Examples of reportable incidents – RIDDOR – HSE
Please note that these records must be kept for a minimum of three years after the date of the last incident entered in the book. It is also imperative that all the employee RIDOOR records are confidential and stored securely to comply with the Data Protection Act.
How can I make sure that I am compliant?
- Ensure that you have an up-to-date Health and Safety policy which includes all the steps required for reporting any work-place accidents or dangerous occurrences.
- Ensure that you have assigned a ‘responsible person’
- Ensure that all your employees are briefed on RIDDOR and encouraged to come forward with any issues they may spot.
- If in doubt, please do get in touch with us at Kate Underwood HR and we will be happy to assist you with any queries you may have.
How can we help?
If you would like to review your health and safety policies, we can help! Get in touch with our friendly team to find out more.
