What is a 'near miss' and why is it important to report?

• A. A routine maintenance event with no safety implications.
• B. A safety drill being canceled.
• C. An incident with no injury that could have caused harm; reporting helps identify hazards before injuries occur.
• D. An injury that occurred but was minor.

Answer: (C)

A near miss is a situation where something went wrong that could have caused injury or damage, but didn’t—usually due to luck, good fortune, or protective measures that stopped harm before it could occur. Reporting these events is important because they reveal hazards and weaknesses in processes or controls before someone gets hurt. By capturing near misses, teams can investigate what nearly happened, identify root causes, and implement corrective actions to prevent a real injury or damage in the future. This also helps build a safety culture that encourages open reporting rather than silence. In contrast, a routine maintenance event with no safety implications doesn’t involve a risk of harm, a canceled safety drill isn’t an incident with risk, and an injury—even if minor—constitutes harm and isn’t a near miss.