Ladder safety - a warning

Dreamscometrue

sevenhills wrote: »

if you are using ladders for 15 years to access your loft, perhaps they were worn out?

I'd hope they hadn't worn out being mostly made of aluminiium, I'd imagine these things could last indefinitely if used carefully by someone within the weight limit. Who knows. It's not as if I climb in the loft on a weekly basis.

Norman_Castle

Dreamscometrue wrote: »

I made photos of the damaged door, broken ladders, bloody carpet & door.

Would be interesting to see the broken ladders. Can you post the pictures on here?

I've got a few set of aluminium ladders, all are 20+ years old. I think the advice about not using the top rungs is normally about stability rather than strength.

Dreamscometrue

I can't see the option to upload files from my pc. Boiler is now not responding at all and it's chilly here.

[Deleted User]

Dreamscometrue wrote: »

I can't see the option to upload files from my pc. Boiler is now not responding at all and it's chilly here.

I think you need to put them on a site such as imgur first.

d0nkeyk0ng

Interesting. I bought some ladders at the start of the year. When we had our loft hatch converted into a proper dropdoor one, we called someone in to give a quote. They were happy to use our ladders to get inside the hatch. I'd never thought about it failing. I'd brought it up because I thought it would save time and hassle.

Having said that when he came to do the work, he brought up his own ladder.

googler

EachPenny wrote: »

The main issue is whether he decides to report the accident to the HSE under RIDDOR. It sounds like whether it is reportable will be a close call.

Does RIDDOR apply in the case of work carried out in private homes?

EachPenny

googler wrote: »

Does RIDDOR apply in the case of work carried out in private homes?

My understanding of the regulations (albeit my last training was some time ago) is that if the person is 'working' then the private home becomes a 'workplace' for the purposes of the regulations. The important factors are the nature of the accident (or incident) and who was involved. The reporting requirement is not limited to factories or large construction sites for example.