Risk assessment - clearing up after a flood

Following a flood, the clean up exercise can be hazardous. With this in mind, we have prepared a risk assessment that identifies how to get your premises back in order safely.

What to do?

If your business has been affected by flood waters, health and safety is unlikely to be at the forefront of your thoughts. However, if you’re going to ask your staff to get involved with the clean-up operation, it really should be considered. This is because there are many hazards associated with this type of work, and not all of them are obvious. We’ve identified the hazards and suitable control measures for you in our Risk Assessment - Clearing Up After a Flood document.

Not your staff

In most instances, your insurer should arrange for contractors to clean up. However, you may wish your staff to be involved in the process. If a contractor takes on the work, they should complete the risk assessment for their work.

The basics

Based on our standard risk assessment pro forma, the document identifies the potential hazards that staff and others may encounter. It also includes some sample control measures which, if followed, reduce the risks to an acceptable level. As with our other risk assessments, if this document covers the scenario that you’re dealing with, then it can be left as it is. If not, you should amend it accordingly.