Risk management is a vital step in any construction project. Every project will have hazards and dangers, so it is important to identify these so that positive action can be taken to carry out the work safely. As a contractor, a risk assessment is a legal requirement, but this is not the only reason that you should be carrying one out. This post will look at the main reasons why a risk assessment is such an important step for a contractor before getting to work.
Legal
First, a risk assessment is required by law. It is your legal obligation to protect your workers and others from harm and this involves identifying what could cause injury or illness, deciding how likely it is that someone will be harmed, and taking action to eliminate or control the risk. If the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) finds that you do not have a risk assessment, you could face unlimited fines and even prison time.
Moral
There is also a moral obligation that you have to protect your workers. You do not want members of your team or anyone else to suffer an injury, especially as many hazards in construction can be life-threatening. This is why you need to identify risks in any project, including those outside of your control like high winds and flooding. You also want to make sure that you have builders’ insurance in place for financial protection in the event of an injury to an employee or member of the public.
Reputation
A risk assessment is also important for protecting your reputation. As a contractor, you need to develop and maintain a positive reputation so that you can find ongoing work and benefit from word-of-mouth marketing. If there is an accident or injury that occurs during the construction project that could have been avoided, this could cause significant reputational damage that could be difficult to recover from and you might find it a lot harder to find work.
Another important factor when it comes to your reputation is customer feedback. People will always seek out reviews of contractors before making a decision, so you want to make sure that you collect feedback and then display this on the company website and social media. If you ever receive negative reviews, you should address this by apologizing and trying to find a positive solution.
As you can see, a risk assessment is a hugely important process to go through before construction work can begin as a contractor. You want to assess the work activities, equipment, people, and processes involved in the work and identify the risks involved so that you can then remove or manage these risks. Hopefully, this will ensure that the project goes smoothly and that accidents and injuries are avoided.
