A care home records accidents and incidents constantly: falls, skin tears, medication errors, near misses, challenging behaviour. Most are logged, reviewed and learned from internally. A small number are different: they must be reported to the Health and Safety Executive under RIDDOR, or notified to the care regulator, within a deadline. The risk is not usually the incident itself, it is missing the one that had to be reported, or reporting it too late. The real question is how to record every incident so the reportable ones surface in time.
Guide · Health Care
Accident, incident and RIDDOR reporting in care homes.
A practical guide to recording accidents and incidents in a UK care home, and knowing when one is reportable to the HSE under RIDDOR or notifiable to the regulator, captured on the floor over WhatsApp so nothing is missed or reported late.
Free forever: 20 reports a month. No card, no trial clock.
The point
Recording an incident is not the end of it.
Deciding what to do with it is. Most falls and incidents are logged and reviewed internally. A few must be reported to the Health and Safety Executive under RIDDOR, or notified to the regulator, within set timescales. A tool makes the record easy to capture on the floor, and helps flag the ones that need reporting on before the clock runs out.
Three outcomes
What happens to a care incident.
Log and review
The internal record
Every accident and incident logged with what happened, who was involved, and what was done, then reviewed for patterns and lessons.
RIDDORReportable to the HSE
Certain work-related deaths, specified injuries and dangerous occurrences are reportable to the HSE under RIDDOR 2013, within set timescales.
NotifyTell the regulator
Some events must be notified to CQC, the Care Inspectorate or the relevant regulator, separately from any RIDDOR report.
The friction
A late report is worse than the incident.
RIDDOR and regulator notifications carry deadlines. An incident logged on a paper form in a folder, reviewed a fortnight later, can miss the window entirely. Capture the incident at the point it happens, with the facts and a photo, and the decision about whether it is reportable gets made while there is still time to make it.
Log incidents on WhatsApp
No app install. No training.
Staff record the incident in WhatsApp as it happens. Text, voice note or photo. The report generates itself and the manager sees it straight away, so a reportable event is spotted while the clock still allows it. Setup to first live workflow usually takes under a week.
The short version
- Every accident and incident should be logged with the facts, reviewed for patterns, and acted on. This is internal record-keeping and learning.
- Certain work-related events are reportable to the HSE under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR), within set timescales.
- RIDDOR is about work-related harm; not every resident fall or injury is RIDDOR-reportable, and the distinction matters. Check the current HSE guidance for your situation.
- Separately, some events must be notified to the regulator, CQC in England, the Care Inspectorate in Scotland, and the equivalents in Wales and Northern Ireland.
- Deadlines are the trap: a late report is a compliance failure in itself. Capture at the point of the incident so reportable ones surface in time.
- Quickler records the incident and the evidence and surfaces it fast. It does not decide reportability for you and is not a clinical record.
RIDDOR
When a care incident is reportable to the HSE
RIDDOR, the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013, requires responsible persons to report certain work-related incidents to the Health and Safety Executive. In a care setting these can include work-related deaths, specified injuries to workers, certain injuries to non-workers such as residents where the injury arose from the work activity and the person is taken to hospital, some occupational diseases, and dangerous occurrences. Each category has its own definition and its own reporting timescale.
The key distinction, and where care homes most often get it wrong, is that RIDDOR is about work-related harm. A resident fall that results from their own frailty and medical condition is not automatically RIDDOR-reportable, whereas one arising from the way the work was carried out may be. This is a judgement that has to be made against the current HSE guidance, case by case. Quickler captures the facts of the incident so that judgement can be made properly and promptly; it does not make the judgement for you. Always check the current HSE RIDDOR guidance, and treat this page as general information, not legal advice.
Notifications
Telling the regulator, separately
Reporting to the HSE under RIDDOR is not the same as notifying your care regulator, and one does not cover the other. Providers have duties to notify the regulator of certain events: in England, CQC must be told of specified events such as deaths, serious injuries and certain incidents; in Scotland the Care Inspectorate has its own notification requirements; Wales and Northern Ireland have theirs. The lists and timescales differ, and an event can require both a RIDDOR report and a regulator notification, or one, or neither.
The practical consequence is that a single incident can trigger two separate reporting duties with two separate deadlines. A home that only thinks about its internal log will miss both. Capturing the incident promptly, with the manager alerted, is what makes it possible to work through both questions, is this RIDDOR-reportable, and does the regulator need to be notified, while the timescales still allow it. Work from the current guidance for the HSE and your regulator.
Scope, honestly
The record and the evidence, not the decision
Quickler records the incident: what happened, when and where, who was involved, what was done, and a photo where it helps. It surfaces the record to the manager immediately, so nothing sits unread in a folder, and it turns the follow-up actions into a tracked list. Across a group, it gives a live view of incidents and open actions without chasing each home for its accident book.
What quickler does not do is decide for you whether an incident is RIDDOR-reportable or notifiable to the regulator. Those are judgements the responsible person and registered manager make against the current statutory guidance. Quickler is not a clinical record either; the resident's clinical detail stays in your care planning system. Quickler is the capture, evidence and prompt layer that makes sure the reportable ones are seen in time, not the arbiter of the rules.
Questions, answered
Is every resident fall RIDDOR-reportable?
No. RIDDOR is about work-related harm. A fall arising purely from a resident's own frailty or medical condition is generally not RIDDOR-reportable, whereas one arising from how the work was carried out may be, subject to the specific criteria. It is a judgement made case by case against the current HSE guidance. Log every fall internally regardless, and assess reportability separately.
What is the difference between RIDDOR and a regulator notification?
RIDDOR is a report to the Health and Safety Executive about certain work-related incidents. A regulator notification is a separate duty to tell your care regulator, CQC, the Care Inspectorate or the equivalent, of specified events. One incident can require both, either, or neither, each with its own criteria and deadline. Check the current guidance for both.
Does Quickler decide whether to report an incident?
No. Quickler records the incident promptly, surfaces it to the manager, and tracks the follow-up, so a reportable event is spotted while the deadline still allows it. The decision on whether something is RIDDOR-reportable or notifiable to the regulator is a judgement the responsible person makes against the current statutory guidance. Quickler is the capture and evidence layer, not the arbiter of the rules.
Can staff log incidents over WhatsApp?
Yes. Quickler's workflow runs over the WhatsApp Business API. Staff record the incident in their existing WhatsApp chat as it happens, with text, a voice note or a photo, and the report generates automatically and reaches the manager straight away. No separate app or login is required, and clinical detail stays in your care record, because quickler is not a clinical system.
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