Farmers being unwilling to report accidents is leading to misunderstandings around farm safety, a farm safety webinar has heard.

Some 4.1 of every 100,000 farm workers will have a fatal accident at work, which is more than twice the likelihood of the average worker, data presented at a SafeHabitus webinar found.

A case study from Finland showed that goat farmers are 4.8 times more at risk of injury than an average worker, while dairy and beef farmers are 2.1 and 1.5 times more likely respectively.

Speaking during the webinar, Dr Risto Rautiainen from the Finnish National Resources Institute said farm injuries can be more varied than people expect.

“Machinery is an easy target, but they only cause about one-fifth of injuries, so we need to take a broader view of it.”

Reporting

While fatal accidents are more likely on farms, figures on non-fatal injuries are similar between farmers and regular workers, which researchers at the Estonian University of Life Sciences believe is down to a lack of reporting.

This could be due to the number of farms run by families and the lack of insurance cover for accidents.

Ireland is one of only 10 EU member states that offers insurance for all types of farmers (self-employed, family workers and employees).

Teagasc senior health and safety adviser Dr John McNamara agreed with the figures that farmers are apprehensive to report.

“Farmers are unwilling to report accidents, even though they are legally required to do so in Ireland,” he said.

“Good data allows for a focus on the critical issues like child safety or the elderly.”

Ireland

Meanwhile, comparing Ireland’s figures with the rest of Europe, Dr McNamara added that Irish farmers have been more conscious of safety.

“Contrary to other countries, [Ireland has] managed to get fatal accidents down after a high in 2014. It is down, but it will be hard to keep it down.”