Rank: Forum user 
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Just wondering what people do for accident book entries and whether you allow unfettered access to the book for employees or whether you appoint someone to whom accidents are reported and them the book is filled out with the Injured Party and the appointed person.
Is there any legal requirement for employees to have 'free' access to the book (I don't think there is but be good to get confirmation). Please don't get hung up on the 'free' word, I simply mean that they have to be able to put in entries by themselves with nobody else to report the accident to prior to entering in tothe book?
Background:-
Reason for asking is our employees have uncontrolled access to the book and I have just that I have just received an accident book entry of a back sprain that apparently occurred some 7 weeks ago. The IP filled out the book yesterday for the injury, he never reported the injury at the time, never had any time off and never had any first aid treatment and never discussed completing the accident book with his line manager / SHE team yesterday.
Just concerned about where this going in terms of future incidents like this, how do we investigate, claims and controlling what could, if I'm being honest, complete fabrications of injuries that we cannot then properly investigate.
For the record I have no issue with people reporting injuries minor or otherwise in fact I encourage it.
Any views??
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Rank: Super forum user 
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Harpa,
The Accident Book is ostensibly to enable an employee to record an alleged accident, it is in no way an admission of liability & was initially introduced under Social Security legislation, therefore my view is that there should be "free" access.
Re the background to the case, are your Accident Books not of the new variety where the entry sheet is removed & secured in a safe place to comply with Data Protection legislation?
If so, what happened to it once the IP had completed it?
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Rank: Forum user
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As previously mentined by another contributer - the accident book entries should be a private issue (data protection) and once completed the page removed and stored securely. There is obviously no control over such factors if "free access". Also in my experience, very few people know how to complete accident book entries with suffucient information and detail to be of any use in carrying out an investigation and if left open to anyone all kinds of stupid things end up entered in it. All this points towards appointed people being "in charge" of accident book entries and all personnel informed who to report accidents to for this purpose. The res[onsible persons should also be responsible for ensuring the entry page is filed in whatever the designated safe storage system is for the company.
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Rank: Forum user 
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We don't have an accident book as such - we use an electronic form available on the company intranet (because of the nature of our work, all employees have regular access to the intranet). The IP or someone working on their behalf completes the form and emails it to their linemanager who investigates and completes the appropriate section, then emails the whole thing to me.
The email trail ensures there's an audit record of when the form was sent to the line manager and when they sent it on to me, so any huge gaps between the date of the incident and the date that someone else was first made aware are immediately apparent. Completed e-forms are archived in a secure form.
And yes, this IS permitted by the SocSec regs, as long as the e-form captures the same information as the "approved" printed book.
I should add that all our emails and data storage happens over a government secure network, so data security is assured.
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Rank: Super forum user
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The data protection act requires any accident repoprting be it in an accidenty book or by a computer system to remain secure and to prevent anyone other than those approved to read its content. The new accidnt report book consists of tear out pages which must be sent to the nominated person for investigation and follow up before being placed onto the injured persons personal file for future reference. This not something that should be available for anyone to read even by accident.
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Rank: Super forum user
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bob shillabeer wrote:The data protection act requires any accident repoprting be it in an accidenty book or by a computer system to remain secure and to prevent anyone other than those approved to read its content. The new accidnt report book consists of tear out pages which must be sent to the nominated person for investigation and follow up before being placed onto the injured persons personal file for future reference. This not something that should be available for anyone to read even by accident.
But the question was: Should the accident book be accessible to all (IE: should the injured party be able to do the entry him/her/it/self ?)
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Rank: Forum user
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I am on a relatively large construction site.
The AB lives with me under lock and key but there is a process whereby any of our first-aiders can access the blank pad when required.
When they complete it (or the IP completes it with them) both the AB entry and the blank pad are put back under lock and key and a notification left for me.
Not saying that is the correct way - just our way.
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Rank: Super forum user
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John, of course the accident book should be available so the injured person or someone on his/her behalf can make a record. We had one held by main reception and supervised by me on a weekly basis to ensure that the completed report was being forwarded to me as per the system used. I thought the question was about keeping the details of each report in a way that anyone could see it, sorry if that was an incorrect assumption.
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Rank: Super forum user
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For the purpose of the social security legislation and the actual layout of the printed book, isn't this to allow an individual to complete a record if they so wished (e.g. section 1 of the book)
I ask our first aiders not to fill out section 2 or 3 unless they are actually providing first aid treatment/assistance as many are put off for filling out when their assistance wasn't required. If not then the individual should complete it and will be followed up and investigated.
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Rank: Forum user
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Thanks John Murray - felt like I was getting bombarded until you stepped in. Our process is like most others - the accident book is filled in, the page is torn out and handed to the line manager, who then forwards it on to me. Alternatively individuals can report on a 24hr hotline any accident they have which can then be followed up and an entry made.
Historically our workforce believe they should always have direct access to the book. This has meant the books are left out (just the blank pages!!) so anyone can fill it in if they have an accident. However recently I've been getting late reports come through, filled out by the IP but not notified to the LM. The last one was for a back sprain some 7 weeks back, yet the IP filled out the Acc.Book just last week. This obviously makes it very difficult to investigate.
I'm thinking along the lines of appointing individuals to hold the accident books under lock and key so when an individual has an accident they have to go the appointed person and notify them.
I'm not asking a moral question about whether individuals should always have access, I'm checking whether they have to legally? I think providing they can have it when they ask or they could phone it in to the 24hr line then this is reasonable and would allow a little more control over how entries are made.
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Rank: Super forum user
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Social Security (Claims and Payments) Regulations 1979 as amended:-
Regulations 24 & 25 cover the obligations of employees and employers with regard to recording and investigation of accidents resulting in personal injuries for which claims for Industrial Injury benefits may be made.
Regulations 24 requires employees (or other persons acting on their behalf) to give notice of accidents in writing or orally as soon as practicable to the employer with particulars specified in the accident book
Regulation 25 requires all owners/occupiers ( being employers) within the scope of Factories Act 1961, Mines, Quarries and all other employers who employ 10 or more in connection with a trade or business to keep readily accessible “approved accident book” or equivalent at so that employees can enter details of personal injuries.
Requires employers to preserve records of for 3 years from the date of last entry
Regulation 25 requires employers to investigate circumstances of the accidents notified and records any descripancies found as a result of the investigation
Regulation 25 requires employers to provide specified particulars of the accident or the alleged accident, when requested by an officer of the Department of Social Security (now the Department of Work & Pensions, Benefits Agency) within a reasonable period of time.
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Rank: Super forum user
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If the purpose of making access [to the accident book] difficult that would contradict one purpose at least.
Doubtless some accidents will manifest physical symptoms at a later date, and maybe some notation would be necessary...but several weeks seems lengthy !
One route to data "concealment" (yes, some people like to know others business) would be to have the tear-off either handed over immediately information is entered, or "ballot-box" it(!)
You could go the direct-data-entry route.....but many places do not allow "low-level" employees access to company computers, so yet another route to make life difficult.
I know of one situation where a low-level-employee was denied the ability to enter his own information, having to give detail to the "office girl" (who had full access to confidential information). He was so incensed by this he came in early, booted the computer with a boot disk, used password access software, deleted all company passwords and encrypted the back-ups. Then left employment. Mind you.....he did write websites in his home time....and had worked for various technology outfits.
Must be a moral there somewhere.
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Rank: Forum user
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I don't let anybody submit an accident form entry other than myself. In my experience, people do not complete the forms accurately and fail to put sufficient detail on them. I will generally meet with the injured person and I will fill out the form on their behalf getting to them to agree and sign it off. Once completed I remove the forms from the book and they are kept under lock and key. A blank book is available if I am off work etc. I am a bit obsessive over the whole thing lol but this is due to many frustrations in the past. I know only too well what it is like to recieve a letter of claim and go back and look for an accident form that has been completed by someone else to have little or no detail on it and crucial info like date / time / location etc missing.
Fortunately I am in a position where I am able to complete accident forms but in the past I wasn't due to staff locations, numbers etc and in that case I have always trained an appointed person on how to complete the book and take statements etc.
I always write a short report on each accident which I keep separate and for my own records these in my experience have been invaluable at a later date.
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Rank: Forum user
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Paul Duell wrote:We don't have an accident book as such - we use an electronic form available on the company intranet (because of the nature of our work, all employees have regular access to the intranet). The IP or someone working on their behalf completes the form and emails it to their linemanager who investigates and completes the appropriate section, then emails the whole thing to me.
The email trail ensures there's an audit record of when the form was sent to the line manager and when they sent it on to me, so any huge gaps between the date of the incident and the date that someone else was first made aware are immediately apparent. Completed e-forms are archived in a secure form.
And yes, this IS permitted by the SocSec regs, as long as the e-form captures the same information as the "approved" printed book.
I should add that all our emails and data storage happens over a government secure network, so data security is assured.
My company also has a self made electronic form. Like previously stated it has the content of the approved books plus more specific questions that help our investigations. On the back we have a mini accident investigation section which teh first aider fills out at the accident, this has also proved to be very useful. The form is then keep in secure location by HR dept.
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