Report a work related incident

Injuries you must report

Under health and safety law, employers must report and keep a record of certain injuries, incidents and cases of ill health. These incidents are defined under Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR), and include:

• fatalities
• major injuries, such as broken bones, dislocations or amputations 
• injuries that result in an employee being 'incapacitated' for more than seven days (incapacitated means that the worker is absent from work or is unable to do work that they would reasonably be expected to do as part of their normal work)
• a work-related accident that results in a member of public being taken directly to hospital 
• some work related diseases
• dangerous occurrences - where something happens that doesn't result in a reportable injury, but which clearly could have done.

When to report incidents and injuries under RIDDOR

Timescales vary, depending on the injury / incident:

• In the case of death or major injuries, you must notify the enforcing authority without delay
• Injuries that last more than seven days must be reported within 15 days of the incident occurring
• Diseases should be reported as soon as a doctor notifies you that your employee suffers from a reportable work-related disease

For injuries that last for over three days, under RIDDOR, employers (or anyone with responsibility under RIDDOR) must keep a record  of this - if this is in an accident book, this record is sufficient.

See Health and Safety Executive (HSE): RIDDOR for more detailed guidance.

How to report incidents and injuries

Complain about unsafe working practices or workplaces

You can complain directly to the HSE (how) or you can Contact Safety and Occupational Health. We aim to respond to complaints within five working days of receiving them.

What happens next 

1. We examine all RIDDOR reports we receive and decide whether or not an investigation should be made, based on the information contained in the report.
2. When we investigate accidents we gather evidence to establish the cause, and to prevent similar incidents from happening again.
3. If the reported injury or complaint is a result of health and safety standards that do not meet legal minimum standards, we will take appropriate enforcement action that is consistent with our enforcement policy.

We only investigate accidents and complaints within County Durham, for which it is the enforcing authority (see Health and Safety Executive (HSE): A-Z guide to allocation of health and safety enforcement).