Any thoughts on the below?

An operative is carrying out some weeding and bagging the waste in a black bag. At the end of the task he lifts the bag and puts it on his vehicle. He carries on with his normal shift with no issues. 

The next day he complains that he has lower back pain and says that it may have been due to lifting the bag as it was slightly heavier than normal but acknowledges that the lift didnt pull on his back at the time. He goes on sick leave. He also states that he sometimes suffers from a bad back.

His manager will carry out an assessment of what  further support / training he needs given his declaration of having a bad back.

Can this be put down as a workplace accident given that there is no direct link to the lifting of the bag, or can it be seen as a cumulative effect of the work he carries out which often involves manual handling? If he is off for more than 7 consecutive days would this be a RIDDOR?

Originally Posted by: RVThompson

To help answer your question, you could try here Monopoly:

https://www.hse.gov.uk/riddor/key-definitions.htm#work-related

Thanks for the link interesting that advice on the HSE site includes..

Cumulative exposures to hazards, which eventually cause injury (eg repetitive lifting), are not classed as ‘accidents’ under RIDDOR.