NEBOSH HSE Introduction
to Incident Investigation
7
1.1
ELEMENT 1.1
ELEMENT 1.3
ELEMENT 1.5
ELEMENT 1.2
ELEMENT 1.4
Moral, legal and financial arguments for investigations
The legal argument
Although incident investigation is not explicit in legislation,
organisations in many countries will
have a legal obligation to
carry out ‘suitable and sufficient’ risk assessment. In the UK,
this duty falls under the Management of Health and Safety
at Work Regulations. An incident that goes un-investigated
would potentially show that the
risk assessment for that
work activity was not suitable and sufficient. However, even
where there is no legal duty to investigate or carry out a risk
assessment, it is still good practice to do so.
The penalties in terms of fines and imprisonment apply to
both individuals and organisations who do not operate within
the law. Investigating effectively can demonstrate to the courts that you are taking steps to ensure a
similar event cannot occur
again.
There are differing standards of health and safety around the world. However, organisations that cause harm to workers may
have to fully disclose the circumstances surrounding an incident, especially where enforcement agencies/injured parties are
looking to take legal action or seek compensation.
As
mentioned earlier, certain categories of injury or incident are legally reportable. In the UK, this falls under RIDDOR.
Categories of injury or incident that are usually reportable are:
y
fatalities;
y
specified injuries;
y
injuries causing more than seven days' absence from work/normal working duties;
y
occupational
diseases; and
y
dangerous occurrences.
Fire resulting in the stoppage of production for more than 24
hours is classed as a dangerous occurrence in the UK
Where the regulators are involved in the incident
investigation, the regulator will normally be responsible for
giving the all-clear for the incident
site to be restored to its
normal condition. In the UK, in the case of a fatality, it will
be the police who must give the all-clear
for the site to be
restored to its original condition. When an incident occurs:
y
organisations must take steps to ensure that the
evidence and scene are not disturbed until permission is
given by the relevant authority;
y
the internal investigation
may continue alongside any
external enquiry.