Risk news

Risk assessments may be the stuff of jokes centred around over cautious health and safety legislation, but they are vitally important in preventing unnecessary accidents in the workplace.

Advanced planning of tasks allow for potential risks to be dealt with and measures to be put in place to deal with any problems before a job is started.

A comprehensive risk assessment affects the way in which employees carry out a job and minimises their chances of injury or even death.

Failing to carry out an adequate risk assessment constitutes a serious breach of health and safety regulations and a recent incident exemplifies the need for them.

Two workers suffered broken legs after a warehouse door feel on them while they were attempting to repair a roller shutter and the supporting pillar gave way.

On top of the injury to his limb, one of the employees was struck on the head as the structure which weighed 300 kilograms fell.

His hard hat was split and he received head injuries, meaning he was unable to work for the 15 months following the accident.

Mike Griffiths, an inspector for the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), said: "These two workers have suffered major injuries, with long term effects to their lives, because their employer didn't do enough to make sure they stayed safe."

It was only when the HSE carried out an investigation that it was found no risk assessment had been carried out before the project was embarked upon.

Such an assessment could have prevented the accident and enabled the workers to go about the task in a safe manner with less risk to themselves.

The company was charged with breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and handed a £13,300 fine and ordered to pay £11,631 in prosecution costs.

Mr Griffiths said: "One of the workers could potentially have been killed if he hadn't been wearing a hard hat. Despite this, he still suffered a severe cut to his head and several other serious injuries."

There are five steps which make up a risk assessment, starting with identifying possible hazards and how and who they could harm.

Then precautions must be decided upon and how they will be implemented and then the whole process must be reviewed in order to check it will be effective.