A Glimpse into the HSE Fatal Injury Statistics for 2013/14

In this article we analyse the Health and Safety Executive’s (HSE) RIDDOR reported fatal injuries for the year 2013/14. The data is based on injuries reported from 1st April 2013 to 31st March 2014. The data is marked as provisional with final adjustments to be made in July 2015. The figures and charts use data from the spreadsheets and documents available for download at the HSE web site.

The term worker used in this article is defined as those who are employed (including those on a training scheme, or on work experience) and self employed persons.

Fatality Figures Overview

• 133 workers were fatally injured at work in 2013/14.
• For every 100,000 workers there is a 0.44 rate of death.
• The average death rate for the last five years is 0.56 per 100,000 workers, 2013/14’s rate is 19% lower
• The industry with the highest fatalities is the service industry
• The most common injury for someone killed at work is a fall from height
• 70 members of the public were fatally injured in work related accidents
• The region within England with the highest fatalities is Yorkshire and The Humber with 17 deaths
• The region in England with the lowest fatalities is the North East with 6 deaths
• 133 fatalities for a year is the lowest on record for the HSE
• Over the last 20 years there has been a downward trend in the number of fatal injuries

Number of Fatal Injuries by Main Industry / Worker

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Fatalities per UK Region

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Why are these statistics provisional?

Investigations into workplace fatalities are very often complex and can take a considerable amount of time. The final figures are published after one year which allows for investigation to complete and associated matters to be determined. Such matters include court cases, formal interviews with all witnesses, forensic investigation and coroners’ rulings. The most significant changes in the annual figures were in the year 2010/11 with an increase of 4 and in the year 2009/10 with a decrease of 4.

DDS International can report your workplace accidents to the HSE on your behalf. The PYRAMID™ Online Risk Management System has an easy to use accident and incident reporting module for logging, tracking and reporting on accidents within your organisation also. Please feel free to enquire for further details.