Many businesses can dismiss the risk of slips, trips and falls as trivial or simply as the result of people not taking adequate care but the cause can often be due to spillages not attended to, unsuitable, uneven or damaged flooring, incorrect footwear or poor housekeeping. Many of these risks may be preventable, if we adopt a variety of approaches to mitigating the risk. Tackling slips, trips and falls means focusing on three fundamental areas:
Risk assessment
Completing a detailed risk assessment on slip, trip and fall hazards lets you identify and implement an action plan that's suitable for your business.
Risk control
Control and mitigation of risks, as far as is ‘reasonably practicable’, is the key to success. Allocate the appropriate time and resources to address them.
Risk profiling
Focus on looking at the slip, trip and fall ‘hotspots’ and what's causing them. Once you know what the priority areas for improvement are, you can target these areas to minimise future likelihood of injury.
Chris Andrews, Director of Risk Management Solutions
“At Aviva, our proactive prevention philosophy to risk management allows us to help you effectively manage the risks that may cause slip and trip injuries. By sharing information and advice on how to reduce these risks, we hope that this guidance will help you continue to protect your people and your business from this problem.”
Access and egress
When it rains, snows or there are icy conditions, you need to think about areas of high footfall, such as entrance lobbies or corridors. The correct positioning of entrance matting, provision of external canopies and grilles can help to reduce risk of slips, trips and falls.
Barefoot areas
In swimming pools, spas and changing facilities, where people walk barefoot, you may find deposits of body fats and surface water on floors. Good cleaning practices and effective drainage to minimise wet surfaces, can help to reduce the risks of slips, trips and falls.
Footwear
Making sure employees are wearing the right slip-resistant footwear should form part of your slip and trip risk assessment and control measure. There are many factors to consider before selecting the footwear such as comfort, durability, toe protection, the working conditions, checking with suppliers that the footwear has been tested for slip resistance and trialing different types of footwear. Manufacturers and suppliers can advise if the footwear have been tested for slip resistance and if it has, the coefficient of friction (CoF) test values must be provided. The Health and Safety Executive has further guidance available.
Design and layout
When it comes to slips, trips and falls, the design and layout of premises – both inside and out – can have a significant impact on the level of risk. Key areas to consider are hotspots like stairs, steps, slopes, flooring, areas where there are regular floor contamination risks, poor lighting and uneven surfaces. These should all be considered a priority for regular assessment and potential refurbishment. To help you get started, read our Prevention of Trips document.
Inspection, housekeeping and cleaning
Inspection, housekeeping and cleaning regimes all have their part to play in minimising incidents and near misses inside your premises. You can evaluate controllable factors such as floors, environment design and intended use of the area. Determine who uses the areas, the activities taking place, what your footfall levels are, the impact the weather has and complete regular documented workplace inspections supplemented by near miss reporting. For further guidance, take a look at our Prevention of Trips document.
Outside your premises
Car parks, footpaths, steps and stairs are common sites of slip and trip incidents. Using accident and near miss data effectively can help identify ‘hot spots’, where additional controls or remedial action could make a big difference. Winter maintenance, snow and ice clearance, leaf litter clearance, pothole repairs, upkeep and maintenance are essential components of a successful prevention strategy.
Stairs and steps
Careful design that eliminates hazards is important. Stair falls can be caused due to missing handrails, poor lighting and uneven tread dimensions. Use of correctly designed handrails, adequate lighting, good housekeeping, maintaining stairs and steps, promoting safe behaviour and high visibility slip resistant nosing with reflective markers can make a big difference. In order to improve stair design and help reduce the number of accidents, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents launched a safer stairs campaign - find out more about this here.
*Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0
Helping you control slip, trip and fall risks
We can help you control the risks in your workplace, by undertaking slip alert testing as part of your Aviva risk management support programme. By combining accident and near-miss data deep-dives with ‘hot spots’ and risk mapping, high-risk areas can be identified. You'll then get a client report with recommendations for improvement. Please contact your Risk Consultant for further information.
Our Specialist Partners to help manage your slip, trip and fall risks
To access this solution at preferential rates and terms, contact our Specialist Partners.
Munro Instruments
Slip risk assessment services
Munro Instruments can help clients reduce the likelihood of slips in their premises with slip risk assessments based on accredited slip resistance testing to HSE and UKSRG Guidelines.
Need further help or assistance?
Call our Risk Helpline to speak to our Risk Management Solutions team for help and advice on
0345 366 6666
Opening times: Monday - Friday* 9:00am - 5:00pm
Email us at: riskadvice@aviva.com
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