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Serious injuries in construction than anything else and roofers account for 24% – the biggest category of worker by far – of those people who are killed in all falls from height.
Any fall from a roof inevitably involves at least a serious injury. The risks are substantial, however long or short the work. Many have been killed who only meant to be on the roof for a few minutes ‘to have a quick look’ or to carry out a small repair.
Falls occur: from the edges of roofs; through gaps or holes in roofs; and through fragile roof materials and roof lights.In addition, many people have been seriously injured by material falling or thrown from roofs.
Accidents don’t just happen to those building roofs, but also to people maintaining, cleaning, demolishing and inspecting them.
Any work on a roof is high risk because it involves work at height. High safety standards are essential however long or short term the work is. The nature of the precautions needed may vary from one job to another.
This leaflet sets out precautions that are relevant for all roof work and then describes precautions that are particularly relevant to different types of roof.
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