Do you know what your organisation’s LTI is? Whether it’s one day or several weeks, these incidents cause significant repercussions for your employees and the business.
By analysing LTIs and incident frequency, you can identify key safety concerns and compare your organisation to your industry average. This way, you can make informed decisions about your safety processes.
In this article, we outline what an LTI is, how to calculate your LTI frequency rate, and then how to improve your overall site safety. If you want to identify key safety risks and improve operational performance, this is a great place to start.
What is a Lost Time Injury (LTI)?
Lost time injuries (LTIs) refer to any incident that results in employee absence due to a work-related injury. For example, an employee could sustain a minor sprain and miss one day of work or a broken bone and miss weeks. Both examples would qualify as an LTI. However, note that accidents that happen outside of work are not counted in this metric.
Some industries have specific criteria so we encourage you to check the specific standards for your sector.
What is a Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate?
Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate (LTIFR) is used to measure the frequency of accidents, indicating when action must be taken to improve safety. The higher the LTIFR, the more your worksite safety is lacking.
A high LTIFR can have several negative consequences, including reputation damage, employee turnover, and increased insurance premiums.
The main purpose of an LTIFR is to calculate the frequency of injuries. However, it is important to note that an LTIFR does not account for the severity of injuries or long-term impacts on workers. As a result, we recommend using additional metrics to assess these factors.
LTI rates are intended as a guide and must be interpreted carefully. While LTIFR is not a perfect measure of safety on its own, it is commonly used alongside other indicators such as near misses, hazard reports, and injury severity.
How to calculate Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate
An LTI Frequency Rate (LTIFR) is calculated using the following formula: (Number of LTIs x 1,000,000) / Total hours worked.
- The number of LTIs refers to any workplace injury that results in an employee missing at least one full work shift. For example, a 20-day absence still counts as one LTI.
- 1,000,000 is a standardised factor, allowing comparison between companies of various sizes. Essentially, this is a way to express the rate of incidents in a comparable scale. Note that some organisations use different multipliers (such as 200,000), depending on industry standards.
- Total hours worked is the total hours your employees have worked in the period.
Note that you must exclude pre-existing conditions that were not sustained during the accounting period.
Calculate your LTI using our free online calculator
Example: Distribution Centre
In 2024, a distribution company had 400 people who worked a total of 500,000 hours. Within the year, there were 3 recorded work-related incidents resulting in employee absences. One was absent for one business day, one was absent for three business days, and one was absent for 10 business days. Regardless of the hours missed, this is a total of 3 LTIs.
To calculate the company’s LTIFR, the formula looks like this: (3 x 1,000,000) / 500,000. This equals an LTI Frequency Rate of 6.
Underreporting of LTIs
In order to keep the LTIFR low, some workplaces may discourage employees from reporting minor injuries. Consequently, a lower LTIFR does not always mean a safer workplace and may impact the accuracy of industry averages.
5 ways to reduce your Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate
Reducing your LTI is critical for enhancing workplace safety and protecting your employees. We’ve highlighted 5 key steps to take below.
1. Conduct a Site Safety Audit
Performing regular Site Safety Audits helps you identify hazards before they result in any Lost Time Injuries. During the audit, all findings must be documented and an actionable plan developed to mitigate identified hazards. This may include developing a Traffic Management Plan.
Audits should be performed periodically and following any significant changes to the work environment. The most effective audits are conducted by an independent third party, providing an unbiased perspective and drawing on insights from previous site assessments to identify risks and inefficiencies often overlooked internally.
At SafeQuip, our Site Safety Audit assesses the safe and orderly movement, loading, unloading, parking and pedestrian access throughout your facility. We consider workplace layout, traffic demand, traffic routes, signage, special vehicle requirements, emergency services access, visibility, speed limits, parking requirements, and more.
Book a Site Safety Audit
2. Improve incident investigations
Thorough incident investigations identify the root cause of any workplace accidents. Instead of just documenting the accident, you should delve into why it occurred, collecting detailed information about the event and interviewing witnesses. This is also a good time to review safety protocols and examine environmental conditions.
3. Improve staff training
Without effective staff training, safety protocols and control measures won’t be enough. You must ensure all employees receive comprehensive training that is tailored to their specific roles and covers all relevant safety procedures. Regular refresher courses are also crucial for keeping employees up to date on best practices.
This is one of the reasons a Traffic Management Plan is so useful, serving as a comprehensive training manual to familiarise new staff with your procedures.
4. Conduct a Risk Assessment
As part of a Site Safety Audit, a risk assessment is used to systematically identify, analyse, and evaluate potential hazards in the workplace. This process involves assessing core tasks, equipment, and processes to determine where risks exist and how likely they are to cause harm. Risk assessments should be thoroughly documented and regularly updated to reflect any changes to procedures.
The goal of a risk assessment is to identify and minimise risks. This is achieved by implementing effective control measures that protect employees, visitors, and the public while also ensuring legal requirements are fulfilled. Download our free Risk Assessment Template to get started.
Download our risk assessment template
5. Install safety controls
Following the Site Audit and Risk Assessment, strategic safety solutions can be implemented to improve your site's safety. Depending on the identified risks and hazards, this may include installing safety barriers, line marking, safety signage, bollards, and speed humps to improve site organisation and reduce incidents.
These measures not only minimise accidents but also serve as constant reminders for staff to stay alert at all times. Additional personal protective equipment (PPE) provides a crucial last line of defence if an incident does occur.
At SafeQuip, we support you at every stage, recommending and supplying the most effective safety controls for your operations. Drawing on our industry expertise, we can optimise your site and lower your LTI frequency rate. Get in touch with us today or take our Site Safety Audit Quiz to determine if your site needs an audit.
