What is a notifiable incident in Australia?

Under the model WHS Act ss.35–39 and state equivalents (and Victoria's OHS Act 2004 with similar concepts), a notifiable incident is:

• Death of a person that arose out of the conduct of a business or undertaking, or
• A serious injury or illness of a person that requires immediate treatment as an in-patient in a hospital, immediate treatment for amputation/serious head injury/serious eye injury/serious burn/degloving/spinal injury/loss of bodily function/serious laceration, or medical treatment within 48 hours of exposure to a substance, or
• A dangerous incident — an incident in relation to a workplace that exposes a worker or any other person to a serious risk to that person's health and safety emanating from an immediate or imminent exposure to: an uncontrolled escape, spillage or leakage of a substance; an uncontrolled implosion, explosion or fire; an uncontrolled escape of gas or steam; an uncontrolled escape of a pressurised substance; electric shock; the fall or release from a height of any plant, substance or thing; the collapse, overturning, failure or malfunction of, or damage to, any plant; the collapse or partial collapse of a structure; the collapse or failure of an excavation or any shoring supporting an excavation; the inrush of water, mud or gas in workings, in an underground excavation or tunnel; the interruption of the main system of ventilation in an underground excavation or tunnel; any other event prescribed by the regulations.

Obligations under WHS Act ss.38–39:

1. Notify the regulator immediately after becoming aware of the incident (by fastest possible means).
2. Provide a written notice within 48 hours if requested.
3. Preserve the incident site (s.39) until the regulator authorises otherwise or the incident is attended.
4. Keep records of the incident for at least 5 years.

Each state regulator has its own notification process — WHSQ, SafeWork NSW, WorkSafe Victoria (via OHS Act 2004 s.38 with similar but distinct categories), SafeWork SA, WorkSafe WA, WorkSafe Tasmania, WorkSafe ACT, NT WorkSafe.