What are the common causes of construction accidents?
Written by Marie Oxland | Personal Injury Team | 20 June 2024
Employees in the construction industry are statistically more likely to sustain an injury at work: 27 out of 1,000 people suffered one last year, compared to 17 out of 1,000 workers in all other industries. Falling from height is the number one cause of non-fatal accidents in the construction industry.
Latest figures from the Labour Force Survey record an estimated 69,000 construction workers suffered from work-related ill health during the period 2021-2022 to 2022-2023. 45 fatal injuries were reported in 2022-2023.
Of the workers suffering from work-related ill health, 54% were found to be suffering from musculoskeletal disorders. This rate is statistically significantly higher than that for workers across all other industries.
A reported 2.6 million working days are lost each year due to workplace injuries and work-related illness.
Accidents are not only caused by falls from height. Accidents on construction sites can also be caused by trips and slips. Contractors and others in control of construction sites must manage work so that people can move safely around the site. A construction site should be kept in a clean and orderly condition to reduce the chance of injury.
Thousands of construction workers are injured each year following a slip or trip whilst at work on a building site and many injuries involve fractured or dislocated bones which prevent the member of staff from working for many months. In serious cases, an injured employee may not be able to return to their pre-accident employment resulting in them suffering a significant loss of earnings.
Most accidents could be avoided by the effective management of working areas and access routes, such as stairwells, corridors, footpaths and site cabins. Many slips and trips occur when people are walking on uneven surfaces. The risk can be reduced by providing walkways that are clearly designated as walkways and providing good conditions underfoot and adequate lighting.
Employers should ensure that employees are provided with and wearing suitable footwear on site. Not only is an employer responsible for providing personal protective equipment, they also have to ensure that it is worn.
Other slips and trips happen because there is something in the person's way, such as building materials or waste. These accidents could have been avoided if:
there was good housekeeping in place where everyone was instructed to keep their work and storage areas tidy
deliveries were planned to minimise the amount of materials on site
there were designated waste collections, and skips and bins were provided where needed
making clear the responsibilities for waste removal
An employer should be treating slippery surfaces with stone (mud) or grit (for ice) or provide temporary coverings.
What should employers be doing to reduce accidents at work?
Training is key to protecting workers, whether it’s highlighting dangers or teaching employees to make their own risk assessments on site. Employers should ensure workers have all the personal protective equipment they need, such as helmets, safety goggles and slip-resistant footwear.
In addition to the PPE that workers should be using, employers must ensure that they:
provide training, and plan work at height correctly
use the correct equipment and regularly check it to prevent falls
avoid slips and trips by keeping floors clean, dry, well-lit, and free of obstacles
clear up spillages quickly, deep cleaning after working hours
install safety guards on machinery
store heavy objects close to the ground and fit debris nets
Your employers have a duty of care to maintain a safe working environment.
If you have suffered an injury following an accident, our experienced Personal Injury team can help you. If you’re concerned that the correct procedures were not being followed, you did not receive adequate training or risk assessments were not carried out for the work that you were doing, our team can work with you to see whether you have a potential claim. You can get in touch with them by calling 01752 827085 or emailing enquiries@nash.co.uk.
