Rank: Forum user 
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I wanted to get some opinions on the interpretation of what the HSE's definition of work-related is in terms of RIDDOR reportable.
If an employee was in a normal working position loosening a nut / bolt and felt a pain in his lower back, (no exessive force being applied) and when he stood up the pain worsened resulting in the engineer being off work for over 7 days would you need to report this as RIDDOR based on the principles of the the below taken from the HSE' website:
What is meant by ‘work-related’?
RIDDOR only requires you to report accidents if they happen ‘out of or in connection with work’. The fact that there is an accident at work premises does not, in itself, mean that the accident is work-related – the work activity itself must contribute to the accident. An accident is ‘work-related’ if any of the following played a significant role:
- the way the work was carried out – He carried it out like you or I would, the work position is standard and would be carried out the same way by all.
- any machinery, plant, substances or equipment used for the work or – None of these played a role.
- the condition of the site or premises where the accident happened – No, this was a flat pit and the environment was in good condition.
If I was to come across this situation at first I would say yes report it and I wouldnt have a problem with reporting it, but reading this has put doubts in my mind. I agree that this type of incident is work related there is no question about that if the employee is at work etc. but has the way the work was carried out played a significant role............ I feel not. Your opinions would be much appreciated.
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Rank: Super forum user
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Toby Williams wrote:I wanted to get some opinions on the interpretation of what the HSE's definition of work-related is in terms of RIDDOR reportable.
If an employee was in a normal working position loosening a nut / bolt and felt a pain in his lower back, (no exessive force being applied) and when he stood up the pain worsened resulting in the engineer being off work for over 7 days would you need to report this as RIDDOR based on the principles of the the below taken from the HSE' website:
What is meant by ‘work-related’?
RIDDOR only requires you to report accidents if they happen ‘out of or in connection with work’. The fact that there is an accident at work premises does not, in itself, mean that the accident is work-related – the work activity itself must contribute to the accident. An accident is ‘work-related’ if any of the following played a significant role:
- the way the work was carried out – He carried it out like you or I would, the work position is standard and would be carried out the same way by all.
- any machinery, plant, substances or equipment used for the work or – None of these played a role.
- the condition of the site or premises where the accident happened – No, this was a flat pit and the environment was in good condition.
If I was to come across this situation at first I would say yes report it and I wouldnt have a problem with reporting it, but reading this has put doubts in my mind. I agree that this type of incident is work related there is no question about that if the employee is at work etc. but has the way the work was carried out played a significant role............ I feel not. Your opinions would be much appreciated.
As you describe things it is reportable under RIDDOR. Of course if the person goes for a checkup with his doctor or occupational health you may later receive more information which changes the picture with regards to the actual cause. However, *as you describe* the person is clearly carrying out a work related activity and has sustained an injury and has had over 7 days off work due to the injury. Therefore it meets the criteria for an over 7 day reportable injury.
Regards
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Rank: Super forum user 
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There are RIDDOR enquiries of various types all of the time on this forum, and looking at them leads me to think that we forget what RIDDOR is all about. We see RIDDOR reporting as somehow an onerous task that needs to be avoided if possible or a reflection of the H&S management within our company. All RIDDOR is, is a means by which the HSE can collect information on accidents so that they can identify trends on a micro or macro level. If a particular organisation has a number of back injuries, thay can at some point expect a visit. If a particular industry shows a trend of back injuries, you can expect a campaign from the HSE.
At the end of the day someone has been inured seriously enough to cause them to have 7 days off work. That's what you need to concentrate on.
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Rank: Forum user
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Hi PL53, thanks for your comment.
I understand that there have been plenty of threads around this topic but I wanted to throw this out there for debate, its not about trying to avoid reporting, its to get peoples opinions about a particular circumstance that may happen.
What about if an office employee arrived at work in his company car (Work equipment) gets out and feels a slight pain in his lower back as he presses the button on his boot to open it, he grabs his rucksack out, reaches up to close the boot of his car and feels significant pain his lower back resulting in him being off work for over 7 days, not really that disimilar to the original post / incident example there at work, would you report that to the HSE??
Isnt the HSE more concerned / interested in the serious incidents / accidents that industry and organisations can learn from?? And isnt this one of the reasons they extended from 3 days to 7 days to try and avoid minor incidents / accidents??
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Rank: Super forum user
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PL53 wrote:There are RIDDOR enquiries of various types all of the time on this forum, and looking at them leads me to think that we forget what RIDDOR is all about. We see RIDDOR reporting as somehow an onerous task that needs to be avoided if possible or a reflection of the H&S management within our company. All RIDDOR is, is a means by which the HSE can collect information on accidents so that they can identify trends on a micro or macro level. If a particular organisation has a number of back injuries, thay can at some point expect a visit. If a particular industry shows a trend of back injuries, you can expect a campaign from the HSE.
At the end of the day someone has been inured seriously enough to cause them to have 7 days off work. That's what you need to concentrate on.
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