Electrical Risk Management: Identifying Hazards, Assessing Risks and Applying Control Measures

An electrical installation consists of electrical equipment, wiring, and accessories designed and installed to distribute and use electrical energy safely. Electrical installations can be found in domestic premises, such as houses and apartments, or non-domestic premises, such as offices, factories, shops and construction sites.

Safety is a fundamental consideration in every electrical installation. It should be considered from the initial design stage and maintained throughout the installation, testing, commissioning and operation of the electrical system. Proper planning and compliance with relevant requirements help prevent electric shock, fire, equipment damage and other hazards.

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Some key factors that contribute to electrical safety include:

1. Follow relevant legislation, standards and regulations:

Electrical installations in Australia must be designed, installed and tested in accordance with the applicable legislation, regulations and standards.

AS/NZS 3000:2018 – Electrical Installations (Wiring Rules) provides the primary requirements for the design, construction and verification of low-voltage electrical installations. Depending on the type of installation and the work being carried out, other relevant standards, legislation and regulations may also apply.

These may include:

• Electrical Safety Act 2002 (Qld)
• Electrical Safety Regulation 2026 (Qld)
• Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld)
  

Following these requirements helps ensure that electrical installations are designed and installed to an acceptable level of safety.

2. Identify hazards and assess risks before starting the design

Safety should be considered before the electrical installations are designed. A risk assessment should be carried out to identify potential hazards associated with the installation, its intended use and the work required to construct and maintain it.

The risk assessment should consider:

• What hazards could be present?
• Who could be exposed to these hazards?
• How serious could the consequences be?
• What control measures can be implemented to eliminate or reduce the risks?
  
  

Once hazards have been identified, it is important to assess and control the associated risks using appropriate measures. The most effective strategy is to focus on eliminating or reducing the risk at its source, rather than depending solely on procedures or personal protective equipment. The Hierarchy of Risk Controls provides a structured approach to selecting and implementing measures, prioritising the most effective controls.

Good electrical safety starts with good design. Identifying and controlling hazards early can significantly reduce the likelihood of accidents during installation, testing, commissioning and normal operation.

Risk Management

Although a qualified individual conducts the risk assessment, the entire team can play an active role in the process. In fact, anyone, including a housekeeping staff member, can help spot potential hazards.

Identify the hazard

A hazard is any source or situation with the potential to cause harm. Common examples include noise, working at heights, and exposure to hazardous chemicals. The entire team should participate in assessing both major and minor hazards. Every worker, operator, and engineer can actively inspect their workplace to recognise potential dangers or review past incident reports to identify recurring hazards.

Hazards generally arise from the following aspects:

• Physical work environment
• Equipment, materials and substances used
• Work tasks and their procedures
• Work design and management
• Design changes or modifications
• Exposure to high electromagnetic fields may be dangerous for a few workers with some medical conditions, like workers who are using pacemakers.
  
  

The following are the charts that show the consequences and likelihood of the hazard.

Extreme	Multiple fatalities or permanent injuries
Critical	Single fatality or permanent injury
Major	Medical treatment or lost time injury
Minor	First aid treatment
Insignificant	Incident or near miss – no treatment

Almost certain	Is expected to occur in most circumstances
Likely	Will probably occur at least once
Possible	The event might occur at some time
Unlikely/Rare	Event not expected to occur or only in exceptional circumstances

We can decide the severity of the hazard.

S = Severe

H = High

M = Medium

L = Low

Assess the risk

Risk represents the likelihood, whether high or low, that a specific hazard will cause actual harm. Conducting a risk assessment means evaluating potential hazards and their likelihood. This process assists in determining:

• The severity level of the risk
• The most suitable control measures to establish
• The level of urgency required for corrective action
• Whether a worker possesses the physical capability to carry out a specific assignment
  
  

Control the risk (Control Measures)

A control measure refers to an action or strategy implemented to eliminate or reduce risk. Once the risk is evaluated and its severity and likelihood are established, definitive control strategies can be selected.
Hierarchy of control measures

• Elimination – Completely removing the hazard. As the most effective control approach, procedures are designed so that the risk is removed entirely. For instance, performing tasks on a de-energised electrical system wherever possible eliminates electrocution hazards.
• Substitution – When complete elimination is unachievable, equipment or processes are modified to lower the risk level.
• Isolation – Separating personnel from the risk or hazard. Establishing barricades around electrical testing zones alerts non-essential personnel to ongoing work and keeps them at a safe distance. Workers directly involved must use required PPE.
• Engineering – Implementing physical engineering controls, such as automated power shut-offs during faults, lead support stands, or isolation transformers.
• Administration – Establishing safe operating procedures and training programs to manage risk. For example, attaching danger tags and lockout devices during testing ensures that only authorised electricians can re-energise the power supply.
• Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) – Serves as the final line of defence. While PPE does not eradicate workplace hazards, it reduces the likelihood of injury. For instance, wearing safety shoes and protective gloves helps guard against electrocution.
  
  

Maintaining and reviewing control measures.

Risk control is an ongoing process that requires regular reviews to ensure measures are effective. Re-evaluating control measures is necessary whenever equipment or operational procedures are changed.

Example -Job – install a tube light

Identify the hazard

1. Installation work must be performed at height
2. The tube light fixture is glass

Assess the risk

1. Risk of the installer falling during installation
2. Risk of electrocution to the person installing the fixture
3. Risk of breakage leading to scattered glass debris
4. Risk of inhaling harmful inert gas contained within the tube if broken

Control measures

1. Assign personnel who do not suffer from acrophobia (fear of heights)
   
2. Ensure strict compliance with working-at-height safety guidelines
   – Utilise appropriate ladder equipment (insulated or wooden)
   – Wear approved safety footwear
   
3. Utilise an assistant to hand up the tube light once the installer is positioned on the ladder
   
4. Equip both workers with face shields to prevent injury from glass fragments and buffer direct gas inhalation during an emergency descent
   
5. Ensure installers wear designated PPE, such as protective gloves, to guard against electric shock

Hazard	Consequence	Effect of consequences	Likelihood	Severity	Control measure
Installing tube light at height	Worker falls, resulting in permanent injury	Extreme	Rare	Severe	Safety harness usage is required
Installing tube light at height	Installer experiences acrophobia	Extreme	Rare	Severe	Eliminate hazard by reassigning to a different worker
Installing tube light at height	Tube drops and breaks without causing personal injury	Insignificant	Rare	Low	Provide an assistant to support the installer
Installing tube light at height	Tube drops and breaks, leading to inert gas inhalation	Major	Rare	Medium	Mandatory use of face shields
Electrocution	Electric shock requiring first aid treatment	Minor	Possible	Medium	Wear protective gloves and safety shoes; mandatory use of an insulated ladder