Health and Safety Executive (HSE) data reveals a 10% decrease in workplace warehouse accidents in the five years since 2022.
Though the number of accidents has fallen, in the period 2020/2021 to 2024/2025 there were 3,848 reported accidents in warehouses. The HSE wants warehouse operators to improve safety so that there are fewer accidents.
The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations Act 1999 requires employers to provide written risk assessments and create proactive safety processes.
Bureau Veritas requested Freedom of Information data from the Health and Safety Executive to obtain the warehouse accident data for the last five years. The statistics reveal the causes of common injuries in the warehouse, which include falls, trips, items falling, lifting heavy items and being struck by moving objects.
Richard Thomas at Bureau Veritas says:
“Creating a safe warehouse environment relies on a proactive risk management approach — ensuring clear walkways, maintaining high housekeeping standards, and equipping employees with the competence to recognise and respond to hazards before they escalate.”
He calls on all organisations to have a proactive hierarchy approach that identifies and prioritises high-risk safety controls over lower-risk ones. Sustained safety improvements are the result of a safety risk awareness mindset that regularly reviews all existing safety measures and implements new ones when safety risks are identified.
A good warehouse equipment producer designs manual handling and storage equipment that is safe to use and unlikely to fail or cause accidents when operated within specific safety specifications and load limits.
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