Citation

Monnery N. Safety Sci. 1998; 31(1): 59-69.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1998, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

This project attempts to calculate the costs of accidents and work-related ill-health to a cheque clearing department of a financial services organisation. Data was gathered by utilising a methodology adapted from "The Costs of Accidents at Work" publication produced by the Health and Safety Executive. The report concludes that the total cost of accidents and work-related ill-health was not regarded as substantial and is unlikely to be a key motivating factor for improving health and safety management within a cheque clearing department of a financial services organisation. Ill-health costs were far in excess of accident costs, the majority coming from upper limb symptoms. The research suggested that the ill-health costs were underestimated. The results produced a ratio of insured to uninsured costs of 1:3.3. This reinforces the message that insurance does not cover the total cost of accidents and work-related ill-health. There was no definable accident triangle ratio and the results suggest that the nature of cheque clearing work does not create significant amounts of non-injury accidents. For this cheque clearing department, it was recommended that the costing data be used as part of a risk management approach to health and safety, to help focus selective control programmes on the identified 'high cost' losses, i.e. upper limb symptoms. This will assist in making cost-effective use of health and safety resources. In such a limited study, it is not possible to establish how far this department was representative of the organisation or financial sector. However, it is reasonable to conclude that a similar picture, whether portrayed as total costs, numbers and types of loss events or insured/uninsured cost ratios, would emerge in other financial services departments or organisations.