Why this matters.
The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR) place a legal duty on employers, the self-employed and people in control of work premises to report certain workplace deaths, injuries, occupational diseases and “dangerous occurrences” to the Health and Safety Executive. Work-related deaths and specified major injuries (such as fractures, amputations or loss of sight) must be reported without delay by phone, followed by a written report within 10 days. Injuries that keep a worker off their normal duties for more than 7 consecutive days must be reported within 15 days. Many small business owners are unaware these deadlines exist at all until an incident happens and they’re already out of time.
The HSE actively uses RIDDOR data to target inspections and can prosecute for failure to report as a standalone offence, separate from any liability for the incident itself. Common gaps include not knowing that near-misses involving dangerous occurrences (like a scaffold collapse or gas leak, even with no injury) are reportable, confusing RIDDOR’s 7-day and specified-injury categories, and having no clear internal process for who actually submits the report to HSE’s online system. Getting this right isn’t complicated, but it does require knowing the categories and having a process ready before something happens.