An incident site must remain undisturbed until a WorkSafe inspector arrives or gives other instructions, whichever comes first. The person with management or control of the workplace is responsible for preserving the incident site, so far as is reasonably practicable.

Any evidence that may assist an inspector to determine the cause of the incident must be preserved. This includes any plant, substance, structure or thing associated with the incident. However, preserving an incident site does not prevent any necessary actions to:

• assist an injured person
• remove a deceased person
• make the site safe or minimise the risk of a further notifiable incident
• facilitate a police investigation.

For serious matters, the inspector may issue a non-disturbance notice. This applies if they consider that the incident site should remain undisturbed in order to support their investigation. The non-disturbance notice will specify the period it is in effect for.

Notifications are reviewed as soon as possible. A WorkSafe inspector will contact the person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU) in relation to whether the site may be released. Work may continue in unaffected areas of the workplace that are external to the incident zone and do not involve any of the plant, substances, or tools related to the incident.

If you are unsure about site preservation matters, contact the WorkSafe Inspector assigned to the incident if their details are known. Otherwise, call WorkSafe on 1300 307 877 during business hours.

Penalties will be imposed if an individual or organisation fails to preserve a site.

Non-disturbance notice

Following the report of a death or serious incident, a non-disturbance notice may be issued.

A non-disturbance notice is a written directive issued by an inspector. It requires a person with management or control of a workplace to preserve a notifiable incident site or prevent disturbance of a specific site. In certain circumstances, a non-disturbance notice can include the operation of plant. The inspector can only give this notice if they think it’s needed to perform their duties effectively. A PCBU that has been issued with a non-disturbance notice must comply with the notice unless they have a valid reason not to.

A notice may require the PCBU to preserve the site or prevent disturbance of the site for up to 7 days and must include the measures to be taken. If an inspector considers it necessary, they may issue a PCBU with one or more subsequent non-disturbance notices.

A non-disturbance notice permits actions to protect a person’s health or safety, help someone who is injured or make the site safe.