Just waiting to happen ... The work of the UK P&I Club
Human error costs the maritime industry $541m a year, according to the UK P&I Club. From their own analysis of 6091 major claims (over $100,000) spanning a period of 15 years, the Club has established that these claims have cost their members $2.6bn, 62% of which is attributable to human error.
Human error costs the maritime industry $541m a year, according to the UK P&I Club. From their own analysis of 6091 major claims (over $100,000) spanning a period of 15 years, the Club has established that these claims have cost their members $2.6bn, 62% of which is attributable to human error.
In its loss prevention work, the Club is placing a much greater emphasis on pinpointing root causes in respect of personal injury and other incidents. It recognises that investigators often identify the persons most responsible for incidents (active failures) without uncovering the underlying factors (latent failures). The Club asserts that latent failures frequently stem from decisions higher up, and that such failures can be hidden in one or more of 11 categories:
- Procedures
- Hardware
- Design
- Maintenance Management
- Error Enforcing Conditions
- Housekeeping
- Incompatible goals
- Communication
- Organisation
- Training
- Defences
It is not surprising that each of these categories includes the human element! One significant initiative on the part of the UK P&I Club, is to produce a video titled No Room for Error, which shines a wider spotlight on the causes of marine accidents. This involves extending awareness beyond the immediate or proximate reasons for incidents to shortcomings in elated procedures and actions which may well have contributed to their occurrence. Karl Lumbers, the Club’s Loss prevention Director says: “We must prevent the next incident occurring, not the last one. Latent failures are a greater threat as they create conditions in which accidents are more likely and more serious.” Further information on the Club’s loss
prevention work and on all loss prevention videos can be obtained through UK P&I Club’s website at www.ukpandi.com.