Abstract:

Accidental slips and falls can prove costly for property owners architects, cleaners, manufacturers and employers.The elderly are at a greater risk of serious injury and many of the falls are caused more by biomedical factors than environmental factors. Proving this can be a daunting task if the floor was deemed to be insufficiently slip resistant. A combination of factors could have contributed to the falls. The Tables in Standards Australia Handbook 197 gives the recommended level of slip resistance for most situations. Sales staff and property managers are responsible and accountable for safety measures on floors. To ensure that an accident investigation is properly carried out, the author provides some guidelines on what steps to take if a slip and fall accident occurs.