Pop-up Toilets Safety Notice

The HSE recently issued a safety notice regarding a risk of crushing for persons involved in the maintenance of pop-up toilets. The safety notice follows a fatal accident where an individual was crushed when working beneath a raised pop-up toilet.

The hazards identified by the notice arise during the lowering of a raised pop-up toilet during cleaning, maintenance, or inspection activity and intentional or unintentional access to the chamber underneath a raised, unpropped pop-up toilet.

The safety notice highlights a number of actions that could be taken to manage the risk. These include:

• Where practical eliminating the need for workers to reach or place themselves under a raised toilet e.g. by adapting systems of tools to enable work to be carried out work from outside the chamber
• Implementing engineering controls to prevent a pop-up toilet form lowering when someone is working examples include moveable stops and stands which can be locked in position before anyone accesses the chamber beneath a raised toilet
• Making sure that the toilet’s controls are safeguarded to prevent unintentional lowering of a raised toilet

Finally it should be ensured that all operatives have received appropriate training and information prior to working.

If you have any questions or would like support with managing issues at your workplace, please speak to your usual contact or get in touch using the form below.