What makes an incident notifiable
Under the model WHS Act, a notifiable incident is the death of a person, a serious injury or illness, or a dangerous incident, arising out of the conduct of a business.
A serious injury or illness is one that requires immediate treatment as an in-patient in hospital; immediate treatment for an amputation, serious head or eye injury, serious burn, degloving or scalping, spinal injury, loss of a bodily function or serious lacerations; or medical treatment within 48 hours of exposure to a substance.
Dangerous incidents
A dangerous incident is one that exposes someone to a serious risk from immediate or imminent exposure to any of these, even when nobody is hurt:
- an uncontrolled escape, spill or leak of a substance
- an uncontrolled implosion, explosion or fire
- an uncontrolled escape of gas, steam or a pressurised substance
- electric shock
- the fall or release from a height of any plant, substance or thing
- the collapse, overturning, failure, malfunction of or damage to plant that must be authorised for use
- the collapse or partial collapse of a structure
- the collapse or failure of an excavation or the shoring supporting it
- an inrush of water, mud or gas, or loss of the main ventilation, in an underground excavation or tunnel
Telling the regulator
The business must notify the regulator immediately after becoming aware of a notifiable incident, by the fastest means available. If the regulator asks for written notice, it must be given within 48 hours. A record of each notifiable incident is kept for at least five years.
The regulator is the one for the state or territory where the site is: SafeWork NSW, WorkSafe Victoria, Workplace Health and Safety Queensland, SafeWork SA, WorkSafe WA, WorkSafe Tasmania, NT WorkSafe, WorkSafe ACT, or Comcare for Commonwealth workplaces. Victoria's OHS Act 2004 has its own definitions, so check them for Victorian sites.
Leave the site undisturbed
The person with management or control of the workplace must make sure the site is not disturbed until an inspector arrives or directs otherwise. The exceptions are helping an injured person, removing a deceased person, making the site safe, a police investigation, or what an inspector allows.
Near misses count too
Near misses and minor injuries are not notifiable unless they meet the tests above, but recording them is how a builder finds the pattern before it becomes a notifiable incident.
In WHSComply, incidents, near misses, injuries, hazards and environmental events are reported from a phone on site. Anything that meets the notifiable tests is flagged with the regulator to call, and the record holds the notification details and the investigation.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Is a near miss notifiable?+
Only if it is a dangerous incident, such as a collapse, the fall of a load from height or an electric shock. Record every near miss either way.
Who notifies when a subcontractor's worker is injured?+
Every business with the duty must make sure the regulator is told, so agree in the WHS management plan who calls and confirm that it happened. Notifying twice is better than not at all.
How long must the record be kept?+
At least five years from the day the regulator was notified, under the model WHS Act.
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Confirm current requirements with the WHS regulator in your state or territory, or your own adviser.