Notifiable incidents in NSW: when to call SafeWork NSW
Short answer
In NSW, a death, a serious injury or illness, or a dangerous incident goes to SafeWork NSW straight away. Ring 13 10 50, any hour. Leave the scene as it is until an inspector arrives. Two separate steps follow: the register of injuries, and your workers compensation insurer.
Automatically checked against SafeWork NSW on 31 Oct 2026.
What counts, and who to call
SafeWork NSW describes a notifiable incident as the death of a person, a serious injury or illness of a person, or a dangerous incident. Some dangerous incidents are notifiable even if nobody is hurt. The regulator takes calls at any hour, because an urgent investigation may be needed. It says plainly that significant penalties apply to a business that doesn’t notify.
How NSW differs from the model law
NSW follows the harmonised WHS Act, so the three triggers and the immediate notice to the regulator match the model law. Two things on the SafeWork NSW page are easy to confuse. The 48 hours it mentions is the deadline to tell your workers compensation insurer, not a written notice to the regulator. The register of injuries is an internal record you keep for injuries generally, notifiable or not. The page also states the maximum penalty for failing to notify: $50,000 for a body corporate and $10,000 for an individual.
A worked example
A formwork carpenter falls about two metres off a mobile scaffold on a Parramatta site and goes to hospital in an ambulance. The supervisor helps him and makes the area safe, then rings 13 10 50. Work stops in that part of the deck. The guardrail stays as it is. That same day the incident goes in the register of injuries, and the business tells its insurer inside the 48 hours.
How Haznote handles it
On a NSW site, Haznote flags the report as possibly notifiable and names SafeWork NSW. The manager confirms the classification. The PDF records when the incident occurred, when the report arrived and whether the regulator has been notified.
What the regulator says
Each row shows the source’s own words, who published them and when they were last checked by script.
| Item | What it says | Source and check date |
|---|---|---|
| How to notify | Report a serious injury or illness, a death or a dangerous incident to SafeWork NSW immediately on 13 10 50. Source says: | SafeWork NSW Checked 31 Oct 2026 |
| Site preservation | Do not disturb the incident scene until an inspector arrives at the site, or until an inspector gives direction. Source says: | SafeWork NSW Checked 31 Oct 2026 |
| Register and insurer | Record the incident in the register of injuries and notify your workers compensation insurer within 48 hours of becoming aware of a workplace injury. Source says: | SafeWork NSW Checked 31 Oct 2026 |
| When you can notify | Incidents can be notified 24 hours a day, 7 days a week by calling 13 10 50. Source says: | SafeWork NSW Checked 31 Oct 2026 |
| Maximum penalty | The maximum penalty for failing to notify is $50,000 for a body corporate and $10,000 for an individual. Source says: | SafeWork NSW Checked 31 Oct 2026 |
Plain answers.
Is a near miss notifiable in NSW?
A dangerous incident can be notifiable even when no one is injured. SafeWork NSW says to call it for advice if you’re unsure, on the same number.
Who phones SafeWork NSW?
The regulator addresses the business. In practice a manager makes the call, using what the worker reported.
Does Haznote phone SafeWork NSW for me?
No. It flags the report, names the regulator and keeps the timestamps. You make the call.
Where this comes from.
- Incident notification · SafeWork NSW
General information, not legal advice. Check the current rules with SafeWork NSW.
Flag likely-notifiable reports with SafeWork NSW named. You confirm.
Run it on one site and see the first report land in the manager’s list.