Incident reports are reports which document, usually for insurance purposes, an unusual occurrence within a company. The unusual occurrence can be anything which is not expected to happen during a working day. It is important that incident reports are written as soon as possible after the incident and contain as much information as possible to make them useful. Writing the report is relatively straightforward but does need some care and attention.

Write a summary of the incident, to remind you the order in which things happened. Note important details such as the approximate time the incident started and finished, and any effects the incident has had.

State what happened in chronological order. Start with before the incident, if relevant, and go into as much detail as possible when explaining what happened and how. Ensure that the whole incident is written in sequence, or it may become confusing.

Note any other details pertaining to the incident. Did you witness the incident, or was it reported to you? If so, by whom? What did you do when you found out? This information may be relevant in the future.

List the people who were directly involved in the incident, and the people who witnessed it. Add contact details for these people or their departments, and note if any external services attended, such as the police.

Read through the report and check for inconsistencies or missing pieces of information. Ensure that your language is simple and understandable, and you have not used slang or expertise language.

File or submit the report as soon as possible.

Tip

Ensure that no confidential details revealed.