What is RIDDOR?

The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR) states that employers, self-employed people or the "Responsible Person" must report serious workplace accidents, occupational diseases and specified dangerous occurrences.

What is a RIDDOR report?

Reporting and recording workplace injuries is a legal requirement. The report informs the enforcing authorities about deaths, injuries, occupational diseases and dangerous occurrences so they can identify how risks arise, and they can decide whether they must be investigated.

Employers must keep an accident book for keeping the records of injuries, although a separate method will be needed for any cases of work-related diseases.

Reportable Incidences

There are many types of reportable incidences and we have outlined the main categories for you.  Any death or injury of an employee would have to be reported but there are exceptions to this, for example where reporting an occurrence would duplicate the requirements because of another reporting system, for example, a member of the armed forces injured or killed whilst on duty would not have to be reported, it’s best to check your industry guidelines and the HSE website for more information.  

Incidents that must be reported include:

• Deaths and injuries caused by workplace accidents
• Occupational diseases
• Carcinogens, mutagens and biological agents
• Specified injuries to workers
• Dangerous occurrences
• Gas incidents

In another one of our blogs, we offer more information about reportable incidents under RIDDOR.

Employers and self-employed workers must report occupational diseases when they receive a written diagnosis from a doctor that they, or their employee, is suffering from these conditions as a result of work activities.

Dangerous occurrences are listed near-miss events. Not every near-miss event must be reported. The list of reported occurrences is quite extensive. Find the full list here on the HSE website.

If you are an employee and have had an accident, injury or been diagnosed with a work-related illness, you should report this to the Responsible Person and check that they have reported the incident.  If you feel that it has not been reported or has been reported incorrectly, you need to contact the HSE.

How long should I keep RIDDOR records?

RIDDOR record books must be kept for a minimum of three years after the date of the last incident in the book. However, keeping them for 6 years is good practice as it allows time for any civil litigation to be made.

What if you don’t report an accident under RIDDOR?

Simply put, you’ll run the risk of being prosecuted by the HSE or another local authority. The court won’t side with you if you simply plead ignorant to the minimum requirements of the legislation - you must show due-diligence to it.

You must also be able to prove that you’ve put steps in place to prevent similar occurrences from happening again.

For more information on RIDDOR, check out our Accident Reporting FAQs and Resources page! You can also learn more by claiming your no-obligation free trial to our Online First Aid Courses!