Most businesses, whether big or small, will experience an accident within the workplace. You may not be able to eradicate all chances of an accident, but you can be diligent in reducing the risk. Below are 5 top tips to have in place which will help reduce the impact of an accident within your workplace.
1: Safety procedures
Ensure you have safety procedures in place and that your staff are well aware of them. This should include a company handbook which lists the steps that must take place in order to prevent accidents in the work place, as well as what to do in the event an accident does happen. Ensure that your staff has opportunities to be trained in first aid procedures. Regularly bring up health and safety procedures within staff meetings and have staff carry out risk assessments.
2: Inspect your premises
Make sure that you carry out a regular inspection of your premises to ensure that it meets health and safety regulations, and check that your staff are working with health and safety measures in mind. If you see any area or action that is a cause for concern, then discuss with the employee responsible to make sure they are aware of the problem and how to proceed. Then arrange a staff meeting in order to reiterate the importance of working within stipulated health and safety regulations.
3: Schedule regular training
Schedule regular training for your employees, such as how to lift heavy objects and how to store away products or equipment safely. Make sure they are well informed and that they fill out and sign forms stating that they have undertaken training and have understood what is expected of them. This will help support you in case there is any compensation dispute following an employee related accident.
4: Safety equipment
Make sure that you check on all your safety equipment to ensure that it is functioning property. This should include checks on all fire extinguishers, fire alarms and smoke alarms. Make sure that all escape routes are well planned and that you conduct regular fire alarm tests on equipment and with staff. Regularly check on first aid kits to ensure that they are well stocked.
5: Be well insured
Make sure you and your staff are adequately insured. Talk with your insurance broker about what your current insurance covers you and your staff for, and make sure you are comfortable about the level of cover you have. If in any doubt, then review your insurance policy and take out new or additional cover if required. Consider taking out additional cover such as income protection insurance, which will cover you if you experience any loss of earnings due to damage to your business. Make sure you have adequate business liability insurance and consider taking out an insurance package which will cover you for many possible outcomes. An insurance package deal will also cost less than taking out various separate options. Talk with your current insurance broker about what insurance packages are available to you and what they cover.