Accident / Incident Investigation
At its simplest, accident investigation is undertaken in order to learn lessons and to effect an alteration in performance so that an injurious event may be prevented from occurring again. In practice, because of the costs involved, most accident investigations occur following an incident with serious consequences for those involved. There may have been serious injury, or a fatality, or a near-miss which could have had such a serious result; there may be a prosecution pending, a compensation claim, or an enquiry by an insurance company.
Whatever the reason for an accident investigation, it must be carried out in a methodical manner by a person or persons trained and competent to investigate.
There are a number of components key to any investigation:-
- Early arrival by the investigator at the scene of an accident
- Non-disturbance of the site
- Photographs taken at or immediately following the event
- Witness statements recorded soon after the event, without witnesses conferring
- Records of relevant inspections and prior maintenance of any equipment involved
- Records of training, experience and competence of those persons involved or having responsibility for the site
Investigators must act sympathetically while remaining totally impartial and objective in order to extract the maximum amount of evidence from the parties involved.
A written report will then be produced. The report must be succinct, but of sufficient length to disclose all of the gathered evidence. A summary of the accident which occurred will open the report. The methodology of the investigation will then be described before entering into the report’s main body.
The events leading up to the accident will be described. As precise a description of the accident as can be obtained will follow, detailing those involved, the injuries or losses sustained and the witnesses. All information gained during the investigation will then be recorded.
The investigator will then write down his assessment of the matter in the format of a discussion document before arriving at the report’s Conclusions, then his Recommendations. In the Appendix to the report will be placed supporting material such as photographs, diagrams and photocopies of documents. It is then the duty of the Directors and Managers to take note of the recommendations and instigate remedial actions within the organisation.
Following an accident it can be in an employer’s interest to employ an independent investigator. This will ensure that an impartial and objective assessment is made and demonstrate to enforcing authorities that the employer is concerned to address the root causes of the incident.
Should an accident or near miss occur which falls under the requirements of The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995, it is a legal duty for the responsible person to notify the HSE as soon as possible. Details of how this can be done can be found on the HSE website
Details of how this can be done can be found on the HSE website .Should you need to report an incident there is online form via the HSE