Hill Solomon

A near miss is an unplanned event that did not result in an injury, illness or damage – but had the potential to do so. Only a fortunate break in the chain of events prevented injury, fatality or damage from occurring.  

Why report a Near Miss?

• Accidents can be avoided if near misses are analysed and acted upon.
• Information learned can be shared with other sites to help make them safer too.
• If left unreported – accidents, possibly serious ones, could happen in the future with potentially dire consequences.    

Why don’t people report near misses anyway?

“No one else has mentioned it”

“People will think I’m interfering.  I don’t want to be considered a moaner, a jobsworth, or worse still, a grass!”

“I’m new here – it’s not my place”

“If I make a fuss, someone else will be blamed for causing a hazard”

“Do I have to put my name on the report card?”  

By effectively communicating the right messages to your workforce, you can encourage a proactive culture to safety where nobody is afraid to speak up and where everyone is confident that they will be supported by their colleagues and managers.