Hazard vs Risk: The Crucial Distinction
A common flaw in contractor safety documentation is confusing a hazard with a risk. In UK occupational health and safety:
The Potential for Harm
A hazard is anything with the intrinsic capacity to cause injury or damage. Examples: a high-voltage electrical cable, toxic refrigerant gas, an unguarded roof edge, or heavy rotating machinery.
The Likelihood & Severity
Risk is the chance (high or low) that someone will actually be harmed by the hazard, combined with how severe that harm could be. If the high-voltage cable is de-energised and padlocked, the hazard exists, but the risk is negligible.
The HSE 5 Steps to Risk Assessment
The UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) promotes a five-step approach that forms the benchmark for all commercial maintenance risk assessments:
Identify the hazards
Inspect work areas, equipment, chemicals, working at height, and electrical sources.
Decide who might be harmed and how
Identify affected personnel: engineers, apprentices, building occupants, cleaners, and the public.
Evaluate the risks and decide on control measures
Score initial risk, apply the ERICPD hierarchy, and implement control measures to lower risk.
Record your significant findings
Document the hazards, controls, and residual risk scores on your formal risk assessment sheet.
Review your assessment and update if necessary
Revisit the assessment when site conditions, plant, or scope change, or after any incident.
How a 5x5 Risk Matrix Works in Commercial FM
To make hazard assessment objective rather than subjective, facilities management organisations use a standard 5×5 Risk Matrix.