Reporting an accident (injury), dangerous occurrence or disease

Do I need to report an accident (injury), dangerous occurrence or disease?

The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1997 (RIDDOR), place a legal duty on:

employers;
self-employed people; and
a person in control of premises.

What do I need to report?

By law you must report any accident or incident connected with work which results in:

a death or major injury to your employee or self-employed person working on your premises;
a member of the public being taken to hospital from your premises;
a dangerous event or occurrence
an employee, or self-employed person working on your premises, suffers an over-three-day injury
if a doctor notifies you that your employee suffers from a reportable work-related disease.

What is a reportable major injury?

Reportable major injuries are:

fracture other than to fingers, thumbs or toes;
amputation
dislocation of the shoulder, hip, knee or spine;
loss of sight (temporary or permanent);
chemical or hot metal burn to the eye or any penetrating injury to the eye;
injury resulting from an electric shock or electrical burn leading to unconsciousness or requiring resuscitation or 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;
acute illness requiring medical treatment where there is a reason to believe that this resulted from exposure to a biological agent or toxins or infected material;
any other injury leading to hypothermia, heat induced illness or to unconsciousness; or requiring resuscitation; or requiring admittance to hospital for more than 24 hours.

What is a reportable dangerous event or occurrence?

Reportable dangerous occurrences are:

collapse, overturning or failure of load-bearing parts of lifts and lifting equipment;
explosion, collapse or bursting of any closed vessel or associated pipework;
failure of any freight container in any of its load-bearing parts;
plant or equipment coming into contact with overhead power lines;
electrical short circuit or overload causing fire or explosion;
any unintentional explosion, misfire, failure of demolition to cause the intent collapse, projection of material beyond a site boundary, injury caused by explosion;
accidental release of a biological agent likely to cause severe human illness;
failure of industrial radiography or irradiation equipment to de-energise or return to it’s a safe position after the intended exposure period;
malfunction of breathing apparatus while in use or during testing immediately before use;
failure or endangering of diving equipment, the trapping of a diver, an explosion near a diver, or an uncontrolled ascent;
collapse or partial collapse of a scaffold over five metres high; or erected near water where there could be a risk of drowning after a fall;
unintended collision of a train with any vehicle;
dangerous occurrence at a well (other than a water well0;
dangerous occurrence at a pipeline;
failure of any load-bearing fairground equipment, or derailment or unintended collision of cars or trains;
a road tanker carrying a dangerous substance overturns, suffers serious damage, catches fire or the substance is released;
a dangerous substance being conveyed by road is involved in a fire or released;

The following dangerous occurrences are reportable except in relation to offshore workplaces;

unintended collapse of: any building or structure under construction, alteration or demolition where over five tonnes of material falls; a wall or floor in a place of work; any false-work;
explosion or fire causing suspension of normal work for over 24 hours;
sudden, uncontrolled release in a building of:100kg or more of flammable liquid; 10kg of flammable liquid above its boiling point; 10kg or more of flammable gas; or of 500kg of these substances if the release is in the open air;
Accidental release of any substance which may damage health.

Note: additional categories of dangerous occurrences apply to mines, quarries, railways and offshore workplaces.

What is an over-three-day injury?

This is an injury that results in the injured person being away form work or unable to do their normal work for more that three days (including weekends or other non-work days) for example sprains, strains and acts of physical violence to an employee at work.

What is a reportable disease?

For more information on reportable diseases download the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations booklet or you can ring the Employment Medical Advisory Service (EMAS - Telephone Number: 028 9034 7487) of the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland (HSENI) to check if a disease is reportable.

How do I report a death?

If there is an accident connected with work and your employee, or self-employed person working on your premises, or a member of the public is killed you must notify your enforcing authority, either HSENI or your district council without delay, for example by telephone.

Then you must complete an accident report form, an NI2508, and send the completed form to your enforcing authority, either HSENI or your district council, within 10 days of the incident.

Click here to complete accident report form NI2508 online.

Click here to download NI2508 form.

How do I report a major injury?

If there is an accident connected with work and your employee, or self-employed person working on the premises sustains a major injury, or a member of the public suffers an injury and is taken to hospital from the site of the accident, you must notify your enforcing authority, either HSENI or your district council, without delay; for example by telephone.

Then you must complete an accident report form, NI2508 and send the completed form to your enforcing authority, either HSENI or your local district council, within 10 days of the incident.

Click here to complete accident report form NI2508 online.

Click here to download NI2508 form.

How do I report an over-three-day injury?

If there is an accident connected with work (including an act of physical violence) and your employee, or a self-employed person working on your premises, suffers an over-three-day injury you must complete an accident report form, NI2508 and send the completed form to your enforcing authority, either HSENI or your district council within 10 days of the incident.

An over-3-day injury is one which is not "major" but results in the injured person being away from work or unable to do their full range of their normal duties for more than three days.

Click here to complete accident report form NI2508 online.

Click here to download NI2508 form.

How do I report a dangerous event or occurrence?

If something happens which does not result in a reportable injury, but which clearly could have done, then it may be a dangerous occurrence which must be reported immediately.

Then you must complete an accident report form, NI2508 and send the completed form to your enforcing authority, either HSENI or your district council, within 10 days of the incident.

Click here to complete accident report form NI2508 online.

Click here to download NI2508 form.

How do I report a disease?

If a doctor notifies you that your employee suffers from a reportable work-related disease, then you must complete a report of a disease form, an NI2508A, and send the completed form to your enforcing authority, either HSENI or your district council.

Click here to complete accident report form NI2508A online.

Click here to download NI2508A form.