To report an incident to WorkSafe Tasmania immediately, phone 1300 366 322. Outside our normal business hours, your call will divert to a duty officer.
If you are calling from outside Tasmania, phone (03) 6166 4600.
You must follow this up within 48 hours by lodging this online form:
This online form replaces the PDF form that WorkSafe previously required you to submit.
If you experience any issues in completing the online form, please contact the Helpline to get a printable form emailed to you.
Preservation of incident sites
Persons conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU) must ensure (so far as is reasonably practicable) that the site where a notifiable incident occurred is not disturbed until an inspector arrives at the site, or any earlier time that an inspector directs.
The following situations are exempt from this requirement:
- to assist an injured person
- to remove a deceased person
- when it is essential to make the site safe or to reduce the risk of a further notifiable incident happening
- when it is associated with a police investigation
- when an inspector or the regulator gives permission.
What incidents must be reported?
You must notify WorkSafe Tasmania if any of the following incidents have occurred in the workplace:
- a death, or
- someone suffers a serious injury or illness, or
- a dangerous incident.
Electric shocks must also be reported to TasNetworks on 13 2004.
What incidents don't need reporting?
An incident is not notifiable just because it happens at or near a workplace. To be notifiable, an incident must arise out of the conduct of the business or undertaking.
Only work-related incidents are notifiable.
Incidents may happen for reasons that don’t have anything to do with work or the conduct of the business or undertaking. For example:
- a worker or another person suffers a heart attack while at work, which is unrelated to work or the conduct of the business or undertaking
- an amateur athlete is injured while playing for the local soccer team and requires immediate medical treatment (this is not work)
- a person driving to work is injured in a car accident (where driving is not part of their work)
- a person with epilepsy has a seizure at work.
These kinds of incidents are not notifiable.
Serious injury or illness
It means an injury or illness requiring the person to have:
a) immediate treatment as an in-patient in a hospital; or
b) immediate treatment for:
- the amputation of any part of their body
- a serious head injury
- a serious eye injury
- a serious burn
- the separation of their skin from underlying tissue (such as degloving or scalping)
- a spinal injury
- the loss of a bodily function
- serious lacerations; or
c) medical treatment within 48 hours of exposure to a substance.
It is important to note that the treatment under (b) and (c) does not have to be as an in-patient in a hospital.
For more detail on serious injury and illness, read Safe Work Australia’s fact sheet (see Resources below).
Dangerous incidents
The Work Health and Safety Act 2012 (external link) defines a 'dangerous incident' as a workplace incident that exposes a worker (or any other person) to a serious risk to their health or safety, emanating from an immediate or imminent exposure to:
- an uncontrolled escape, spillage or leakage of a substance, or
- an uncontrolled implosion, explosion or fire, or
- an uncontrolled escape of gas or steam, or
- an uncontrolled escape of a pressurised substance, or
- electric shock, or
- the fall or release from a height of any plant, substance or thing; or
- the collapse, overturning, failure or malfunction of or damage to any plant that must be authorised for use, or
- the collapse/partial collapse of a structure, or
- the collapse or failure of an excavation or of any shoring supporting an excavation; or
- the inrush of water, mud or gas in workings, an underground excavation or tunnel, or
- the interruption of the main system of ventilation in an underground excavation or tunnel.
Record keeping
The PCBU must keep a record of each notifiable incident for at least five years from the day that notice of the incident is given to the regulator.
A PCBU who fails to notify can be required to pay a significant penalty.
Incidents involving an injury or illness where workers compensation could be claimed must be reported to the employer's licensed insurer within 3 days of becoming aware of the incident.
Workers compensation
Where an injury results from an incident, the injured worker may claim workers compensation. Follow the process detailed in:
Resources
WorkSafe Tasmania resources
Emotional support resources in the event of an incident: If you, your workers or their families have witnessed, been involved in or been affected by a workplace incident, please see our resources.
Other resources
Incident notification fact sheet: Safe Work Australia (external link)