An incident report template is a must-have document in any work environment. It is used to report and record any unfortunate incidents that may result in injuries, damage to property, and operational disruptions. Learn more about how this generic but customizable template helps with accident preparedness.
Here’s a sample Incident Report template that can be easily customized and adapted to meet your requirements. It’s free to download and use.
What's an incident report template?
Unfortunate incidents can happen in all settings, whether at the office, school, hospital or while driving. An incident report is a document designed to capture the details surrounding any incident that occurs.
While you may want events to flow smoothly, sometimes the unexpected happens, and you need to be prepared for such scenarios. Suppose you're a business owner or you occupy a managerial role. In that case, it's probably up to you to document any workplace illness, injuries, close calls, and accidents, no matter how minor they may be. This information is used to ensure the same or similar incidents rarely happen again in the long run.
In some cases, documenting all workplace incidents is required by law. With that in mind, it's easy to see why an incident report template is a pretty special document. At a glance, it's pre-made and therefore saves you time. It's also customizable, so it works for all types of incidents. In short, this is a document you need to keep around at all times.
What does a work incident report template contain?
This free incident report template contains the following crucial information, from top to bottom:
Details of the person involved in the accident
You'll need to collect the details of the people involved in the accident. This includes the affected/injured persons as well as the witnesses. Accurate incident reporting requires the exact time of incident as well as all the participants.
For affected persons, write down their names, title, and contact information. You can then name the witnesses in the section labeled “witness statements.” Be sure to listen carefully to all witnesses and to record their statements as accurately as possible.
When workplace accidents happen, there are many accident forms, accident procedure checklists and accident reports to fill out. Check your company's accident reporting policy to learn which accident report form to use.
Description of the incident
This section needs to be as detailed as possible and must clear any confusion and answer any questions surrounding the incident. First, include details about the incident's location, date, and time, plus any information related to any police report that may have been filed. When filling in the incident details part, include information about what the affected person was doing and why they were doing it.
A detailed description can help out the incident investigation, as an accurate record of incidents benefits everyone involved in the process. For example, including the type of injury, the description of injuries, the equipment malfunctions, equipment damage and more.
You must also clarify the nature of the injuries, damages, and treatment received (if any). Don't forget to outline how the incident occurred and to identify possible causes. The extent of the injuries is going to dictate the follow-up action and paint a clearer picture for the consequences of the entire situation.
Lastly, provide follow-up recommendations that help to reduce the likelihood of that incident happening again to a company asset. For example, potential hazards that could cause health issues, places that are prone to natural disasters and all other details that will add up to a safe workplace.
To give you a better idea of the information that must be contained in this section, here's an example of a fictitious incident report:
Jane Smith was working in the chemistry laboratory when an open bottle of acid tipped over and spilled on her hand. The incident's root cause appears to be a cluttered environment and Jane's hasty movements as she completed her task. A second possible cause is lack of time since witnesses claim that Jane is always busy and in a rush. Jane managed to receive treatment for her minor burns and appears to be in good condition. As the supervisor, I recommend that regular housekeeping be implemented in the lab. Additionally, the importance of wearing PPE all the time must be highlighted to all lab employees regularly.
Details of the reporting person
The reporting person is the individual that brings the incident to management's attention, whether that's the HR department or a shift supervisor.
The reporting person is usually a witness to the incident who has first-hand information of what happened and which unsafe conditions caused it. Their name must be noted in case you may need them to provide additional information.
Supervisor's name and signature
This is the name of the person who's ultimately in charge and to which the matter is reported. If that's you, make sure you provide your name and signature to signify your role and involvement in dealing with the issue.
All workplace incident reports need to have some key details, and this is the most important one.
How does an incident report template help you improve?
Our incident report template word document offers the following benefits in terms of helping you minimize unfortunate events in your environment:
Quick response
Incident reports need to be completed soon after the incident occurs. Depending on the type of incident, you can quickly customize the template to suit the situation. For instance, it's possible to develop a work incident report template or employee incident report template with a few tweaks.
That means you can ensure that the details you record are as accurate as possible since they are fresh in the minds of everyone. The more accurate the details, the easier it is to determine what went wrong and correct or eliminate the root cause, as well as determine potential medical treatment in the future.
In the future, you can use this information to take corrective measures and remove human error, eliminating risk of incidents. You can fine tune your accident reporting procedure and create new communication channels to keep everyone in the loop better.
For external and internal reference
An incident report preserves the incident in time so that future investigations can be carried out effectively, whether internally or externally. Considering that the report will contain detailed information about all persons involved, what happened, and any other relevant details, it can be pretty valuable for a work-related injury such as a bodily injury.
All investigators have to do is consult the report to see which individuals need to be interviewed concerning the incident. The report can also be used as evidence in any legal proceedings or insurance-related claims. In a nutshell, the information on the report can help to ensure better outcomes in the future.
The type of incident report will depend on what happened in the series of adverse events. However, having real-time visibility into accidents will help meet regulatory requirements and come up with ideas for training for employees in the future, as well as how to take preventive actions.
Tips for customizing this template
- Remain objective and write concisely
- List out the sequence of events accurately
- Use professional but straightforward language
- Be sure to comply with company policies or any applicable rules enforced by governing authorities
- Type the information in the template and then print it or email it
- Make sure you have filled in all the relevant details
- Double-check your information and proofread to eliminate errors and meet legal requirements
Start improving after incidents now
Overall, the main goal of a general incident report form template is to improve workplace safety and minimize incidents such as property damage and other administrative incidents that may happen.
It provides a quick and efficient way of breaking down incidents, so you can identify the root cause and quickly come up with a corrective action plan. Get the template now and be prepared to start investigating all sorts of incidents at a moment's notice. While it can't prevent future incidents, it can significantly improve the incident reporting process for your team.
