If you own or operate retail shops in Australia then slip accidents can be a very real concern, both for visitors and for your employees, and this can result in liability and costly litigation. Non slip floor treatment products and applications can help alleviate any concern over floor safety and help prevent these accidents effectively, but only if the right products, techniques, and professionals are used. There are many anti slip floor options to choose from if you want to detect and address slip fall risks on retail shop floors, and the best possible choice will depend on a variety of factors and considerations.
The Facts and Statistics
• Close to 1 in 3 workers compensation claims are the result of a slip fall accident in the workplace.
• Slip fall accidents in Australia cost millions of dollars each year in medical costs alone. When the cost of legal action is included this total can be in the billions.
• These types of accidents are a prime target for fraud. When retail shop floors have had non slip floor treatment applications this eliminates the possibility of a fraudulent claim, and helps to prevent any liability on the part of the retail shop owner.
• More than 1 million people visit local dgcustomerfirst rooms around the world each year as a result of this type of incident.
• In order to defend against a lawsuit for Duty of Care liability caused by a slip fall accident the average cost is around $50,000 per accident. The cost of applying anti slip floor treatments become insignificant.
The Duty of Care for Retail Shops in Australia
Under Australian law commercial property owners, including those who operate retail shops, have a Duty of Care to keep employees and visitors safe using all reasonable methods possible. Non slip floor treatment applications and products can help you meet or exceed the legal duty of care and prevent any liability for slip fall accidents. Slip floor testing and a thorough assessment of retail shop floors will help identify all risky areas and floor surfaces, and this keeps the owner from being blindsided because of hidden risks.
The CSIRO/Standards Australia Handbook (HB:197) provides recommendations of what degree of slip resistance is required for different uses and environments in both new and existing developments. The Building Code of Australia (BCA) also requires new commercial buildings must provide slip resistive surfaces for safe pedestrian movement, specifically emergency access and egress. These slip resistance requirements, state that “Non Slip Floor Treatment” and “non-skid” surfaces must be installed for pedestrian ramps, stair treads and landings, and will need to comply with disability access requirements. Standards Australia has just released the new standard AS 4586-2013 which covers the Slip resistance classification of new pedestrian surface materials, and also AS 4663-2013 which covers existing pedestrian surface materials.