The safety and well-being of your customers and employees should be one of the major concerns and objectives of the day-to-day operation of your business. While not every accident is preventable, nobody wants to be injured, particularly at Christmas!

Not only can the potential injury result in pain and suffering for the injured customer or employee but these accidents reflect adversely on your business. In addition they also impact your insurance claims experience!

There are many precautions you can take to protect your employees and your customers from a slip, trip or fall and we’ve outlined the obvious below:

Inside your business

The vast majority of all slip and trip accidents involve water (including ice and snow) on the walking surface.

The following are potential trouble spots and conditions which could lead to a slip accident. The entrance areas are real hazards in wet weather, and non-slip mats should be provided at all entry doors used by customers. These mats should be able to absorb the water from wet shoes and boots so the possibility of slip and fall accidents is reduced.

If the floor in these areas tends to get wet and slippery there are several other precautions, you should take to prevent accidents:

1.First, a mop and bucket, to keep conditions under control if water starts to build up on the floor. Also, portable ‘wet floor’ warning signs to be used both outside and inside the doors to alert employees and customers of the slippery conditions.

2.If it’s a public venue the manager on duty should have the responsibility of checking on a frequent basis to make certain that the area is safe.

Outside your business

Your car park and outside stairs should be your main areas of concern when it comes to the control of slip and fall accidents outside the building.

Car parks should be clean and level without potholes which could cause customers to trip and fall.

In the event of snow or ice, make arrangements to have the snow removed as soon as possible.

There should also be adequate lighting for the dark nights.

If we can be of any assistance with insurance arrangements please call GPS insurance brokers on 020 8207 7385