Conducting an Accident Investigation
Course 102
Safety Certified Supervisor Series

INTRODUCTION

Accidents and incidents

Accidents are part of a broad group of events that adversely affect the completion of a task. These events are incidents. For simplicity, the procedures discussed in this course apply most appropriately to accidents, but they also applicable to all incidents in general.

Characteristics of effective incident/accident analysis program

• The program will be guided by written plan that identifies specific procedures and responsibilities. It's important to make sure procedures are clearly stated and easy to follow in a step-by-step fashion.
• The plan clearly assigns responsibility for conducting accident investigations. It's up to the employer to determine who conducts accident investigations. Usually a supervisor, management/labor team, or safety committee member conducts the investigation. Whoever conducts the investigation, needs to understand his or her role as an accident investigator. Usually, two heads work better than one, especially when gathering and analyzing material facts about the accident. We recommend a team approach.
• All accident investigators will be formally trained on accident investigation techniques and procedures. Investigators may attend accident investigation training presented by OSHA, private educational institutions, or in-house training conducted by a qualified person.
• Accident investigation must be perceived as separate from any potential disciplinary procedures resulting from the accident. The purpose of the accident investigation is to get at the facts, not find fault. The accident investigator must be able to state with all sincerity, that he or she is conducting the investigation only for the purpose of determining cause, not blame.
• The accident investigation report will be in writing and will make sure that the surface causes and root causes of accidents are addressed. Most accident reports are ineffective precisely because they neglect to uncover the underlying reasons or factors that contribute to the accident. Only by digging deep, can you eliminate the hazardous conditions and work practices that, on the surface, caused the accident.
• The accident investigation report will make recommendations to correct hazardous conditions and work practices, and those underlying system weaknesses that "caused" them into existence. In many instances, the surface causes for the accidents are corrected on the spot, and will be reported as such. But the investigator must make recommendations for long-term corrections in the safety and health system to make sure those surface causes do not reappear.
• Follow-up procedures to make sure short and long-term corrective actions are completed.
• An annual review of accident reports. A couple of safety committee members evaluate accident reports for consistency and quality. They must make sure root causes being addressed and corrected. Information about the types of accidents, locations, trends, etc., can be gathered.