ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on accidents at work, along with the procedures to follow thereafter involving reporting, investigating, providing first aid facilities and personnel, and dealing with personal injury claims. An accident can be described as any unplanned event that results in injury, ill health, or damage to or loss of plant, materials, and so on. All accidents are “incidents”; however, the definition of an incident is wider in that it includes dangerous occurrences and near misses. The number of injuries and episodes of ill health that occur in the workplace is considerable, and results in many millions of working days being lost each year. Research has also shown that the vast majority of accidents are attributable to a failure to manage work safely. In order to help reduce the likelihood of accidents occurring, attention should be paid to information contained in other chapters of this book.
