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Physical Hazard Information

Physical Hazards Articles & Resources

Slips and trips are the most common cause of injury at work. On average, they cause 40 per cent of all reported major injuries and can also lead to other types of serious accidents. For example the risk of falling or falls from height is increased if the surface is slippery or wet . 

Slips and trips are also the most reported injury to members of the public.

Employers have a legal duty to ensure the health and safety of their employees, including steps to control slips and trip risks.

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Working on a roof is dangerous, almost one in five deaths in construction relate to roof work. Not just homeowners or maintenance people who are cleaning and checking roofs. Professional roofers are also killed who have failed to adhere to roof safety procedures or not using the correct roof safety equipment. Such as working on a roof without scaffolding.

Before using a roof ladder, you should have considered whether there is any other practical way the job could be done without working at height. 

You should also have considered other safer methods of working at height that avoid roof ladders. Such as mobile elevated work platforms, articulated boom lifts (cherry pickers) and scaffolding.

If there is no practical way to do the job any other way than using a roof ladder then how do you use it safely?

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Ladders are a safe, practical and versatile solution for low risk and short duration work at height, but there are some rules and regulations about their use. The article discusses some often asked questions about ladder safety. What is the UK law on ladders, how do the work at height regulations apply to ladders, stepladders, step stools and mobile work platforms? Are there any ladder standards?

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LOLER applies to the way lifting equipment is used in commerce and industry. If you are an employer or self-employed person and you provide lifting equipment for use at work; or have control of the use of lifting equipment, the regulations apply to you.

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There are strict regulations on the amount of vibration that an employee can be exposed to in a single working day.

To help make this easier to understand, we have created a HAVS calculator that can be used to calculate the amount of vibration that a person will be exposed to, and determine whether this meets the Control of Vibration at Work Regulations 2005.

To view this calculator, click here.

Working at height is a major cause of injury at work. For this reason, it is essential that all work at height is fully risk assessed. In this article, we answer key questions surrounding this, including:

  • What is working at height?
  • What are the Work at Height Regulations 2005?
  • How do I complete a risk assessment for working at height?

To view this article, click here.

Before work at height is carried out, employers must carry out a risk assessment and determine what measures are needed to reduce the risks associated with the work.

In this article, we look at the hierarchy of control and how it can be applied to work at height. We also answer questions such as:

  • What is the hierarchy of control?
  • How does the hierarchy of control apply to work at height?
  • How do I control work at height?

To view this article, click here.