Hazardous malfunction - where has this phrase come from?

[eyeserene]

Hi all

I've recently come across the term "hazardous malfunction" while in the process of preparing notes for various H&S courses. The awarding organisations use it in the same context as "accident", "near miss" and "dangerous occurrence".

Obviously the last three are all defined by RIDDOR. However, hazardous malfunction is not defined in RIDDOR and in fact does not seem to be used by the HSE at all. Google Books throws up a few results relating to Electrical safety textbooks.

Consensus on the web gives a definition along the lines of "a potentially injurious failure of objects or assemblies". I can see why there might be a need to make a distinction between (reportable) dangerous occurrences and (non-reportable) mechanical failures that don't really count as near misses, but it seems a bit dodgy to give the phrase the same weight as properly HSE-defined terms.

Can anyone shed any light on where this phrase originated and if it has any 'official' status in H&S law?

[Keith1983]

That's an interesting one. I've not come across it before. It seems like by using that terminology you have already gone some way towards assigning a route cause. The problem being if someone uses some incorrect lifting equipment for example it is not a malfunction of the equipment if it fails if it is not being used for it's intended purpose. I hope that makes sense. The last thing I need is another "phrase" or "definition" to contend with! SOme people just seem to like having numerous categorys for everything rather than concentrating on investigating causes and putting control measures in place.

[eyeserene]

Thanks for your thoughts Keith. Yes, what you've written does make sense. It's a good point that hadn't occurred to me.

My other concern is that on the courses I'm preparing, the assessment test asks learners to write definitions of accident, near miss, dangerous occurrence and hazardous malfunction. If it's not an official term then there's no official definition so there's no right answer, and I think lumping it in with the other terms is very misleading.

[bernicarey]

I'm just a little confused by this topic.

If the Awarding Body has it in the syllabus, then they should be defining what it is. It wouldn't be the first time course materials had been drafted up by someone without knowledge of the subject, and therefore made a blunder.

Some of the definitions you'll find are quite gobbledegook. 'Ask.com' defines it:

A hazardous malfunction is usually the result of a breakdown of the hazardous control systems in a machine or equipment. It is caused by dangerous occurrences in the machine or equipment hence forcing the control systems to break down. They can injure the operators hence one is advised to report to the management if it occurs in order to correct the problem to ensure it does not occur again.

Bad English in my book, 'hazardous control system' sounds like the system itself is dangerous; surely it should be 'Hazard Control System'?

[Keith1983]

I agree Berni, the phrasing and terminology leave it wide open to interpretation and at the same time make it very unclear as to what point they are trying to make.

I think you've hit the nail on the head there Berni when you say that if it is in the syllabus then there should also be a definition available.

[eyeserene]

It wouldn't be the first time course materials had been drafted up by someone without knowledge of the subject, and therefore made a blunder.

Ain't that the truth! I'm glad it's not just me that has never seen this term in the Regs and thinks it's a bit iffy. What I think I'll do is contact the awarding body and see how they explain it.

Thanks both very much for your input.

[Keith1983]

Let us know how you get on eyeserene!

[eyeserene]

For the time being I've unilaterally removed it from the course. I'll continue trying to check with the awarding body, but no-one there seems to know much about it so far.

[kenziep]

Did you find out what they define it as?

[Alexis]

Did you find out what they define it as?

Hi Kenziep.

This post is from 2013 and I doubt you will have any response.