Hello Saif Near Miss - is an incident which could have happened except for a narrow margin, and din't result in dammage to persons or property. An incident is where there is a "direct hit" and results in dammage to persons/property. The incident can be at varying degrees of dammage/injury.

A near miss is an incident which had a far more serious potential outcome. An example is an item (brick?) dropped from a scaffold which just misses a passer by, but in slightly different circumstances could have resulted in a fatality.

Near miss is event which had potential to cause harm or injury,in other hand incident definition is same.if there is no difference between this two then why we are using two definition for one? we should use Near miss or incident.if you have result of an event obviously this will be consider as an accident.i think we should use only on terminology.its near miss or incident. what you think Guys?

From http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/priced/hsg245.pdf (page 5)

Oh for goodness sake!!! An Accident An unwanted event that results in injury to personnel and / or damage to property / equipment A Near Miss or if you like a Near Hit An unwanted event that does not result in injury to personnel or damage to property / equipment but which had the potential to do so. Think we all agree on that surely? Les

I tend to not use the word 'Incident' as it is too vague and grey, just use Accident or Near Miss. In my book an incident is an event, which may have been an accident or a near miss......

The definition I was taught (and use in company induction) for accidents is: "Any unplanned or uncontrolled event leading to actual injury, damage or loss" I then follow this up by explaining near misses must also be reported where a near miss (I'm hoping Hoskin's near hit is similar) is any situation which MAY have caused the above but was prevented by actions of the observer. Easiest example I think of is from a Client's induction video where a ladder is shown being used propped directly in front of a door being used as a main access/egress to a building. Near miss is reported as the ladder position, action resulting is the ladder is moved to one side (possibly a bad example because there was clearly room off to one side when the original actor "abandoned" his ladder.

HSG245 Investigating Accident & Incidents uses these definitions> Accident: - an event that results in injury or ill health incident: – near miss: an event that, while not causing harm, has the potential to cause injury or ill health. (In this guidance, the term near miss will be taken to include dangerous occurrences); – undesired circumstance: a set of conditions or circumstances that have the potential to cause injury or ill health, eg untrained nurses handling heavy patients. -Dangerous occurrence: one of a number of specific, reportable adverse events, as defined in the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995 (RIDDOR).