Summary
This article explains how to enable and configure the 7 Day Incident Notification (a system-generated alert that notifies an assigned user when an incident logged in Assure meets specific RIDDOR-relevant criteria but is missing required follow-up steps) within the Assure platform. It is relevant to Assure Administrators who need to support RIDDOR compliance for UK-based organisations. The feature is configured entirely within the Incident Record and System Configuration modules of Assure.
RIDDOR stands for the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations — the UK legal framework requiring employers to report certain workplace incidents to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).
Prerequisites
- Access to Settings > System Configuration > System Settings in Assure
- The Manage System Settings Supervisor Privilege
- A nominated user account to act as the 7 Day Incident Notification Recipient (the user designated to receive notifications related to incidents requiring follow-up within seven days)
- The organisation must be operating under a RIDDOR Reportable Incident Region to make use of this feature
Problem / Intent
Organisations need assurance that all work-related lost time accidents involving employees are being followed up in line with RIDDOR reporting obligations. Without a system prompt, an incident may be logged but its RIDDOR reporting steps left incomplete. The 7 Day Incident Notification alerts a designated user when an incident qualifies as potentially RIDDOR reportable but either has no return to work date, no RIDDOR record, or a RIDDOR record with no HSE Reference — prompting timely action.
Steps
1. Navigate to System Settings
- Log in to Assure with a user account that has the Manage System Settings Supervisor Privilege.
- Click Settings in the top navigation bar.
- Under the System Configuration column, click System Settings.
2. Enable the 7 Day Incident Notification
4. Within the System Settings screen, locate the 'Enable 7 day incident notification' checkbox and tick it.
5. To the right of the setting, click the Cog Menu (the gear/cogwheel icon used to access configuration options for a setting).
6. From the selector that appears, choose the user who will act as the 7 Day Incident Notification Recipient.
Screenshot from System Settings showing the Enable 7 day incident notification option:
3. Save Your Changes
7. Click Save and Close to apply the configuration.
When the Notification Is Sent
The notification is sent only when all four base conditions are met on an Incident Record:
- The incident is a lost time accident (an incident that results in an employee being unable to perform their work duties for at least one full workday or shift after the day of injury)
- The injury is work related
- There is a person involved in the incident
- The person involved is an employee
When those four conditions are true, the system also checks for one of the following:
Trigger A: The incident occurred more than 6 days ago and there is no return to work date recorded.
Trigger B: A return to work date is recorded, but the return to work date is more than 6 days after the date of incident and no RIDDOR record has been created against the incident.
Trigger C: A RIDDOR record has been created, but the HSE Reference (the unique identifier provided by the Health and Safety Executive to confirm RIDDOR submission) has not been populated.
Note: All four base conditions must be satisfied simultaneously. If any base condition is not met, none of the three triggers will fire, regardless of the state of the return to work date or RIDDOR record.
Notes & Warnings
Note: Only one user can be assigned as the 7 Day Incident Notification Recipient at the system level. If you need multiple people notified, consider setting up a supplementary filter-based notification (see Related Articles).
Note: This notification is designed specifically for RIDDOR compliance in UK-based Assure instances. Organisations operating under OSHA Reportable incident regions should refer to the separate People, Injuries and Absences (OSHA 301) workflow.
Warning: If the assigned 7 Day Incident Notification Recipient user is deleted from Assure without first being removed from this setting, the deletion will be blocked. You must clear or reassign the recipient before deleting the user account.
Examples
Example 1: Incident with No Return to Work Date
An employee has a work-related lost time accident on 1 March. The incident is logged in Assure that day. By 8 March (7 days later), no return to work date has been recorded. The system sends the notification to the designated recipient, prompting them to chase the status of the employee's absence and assess whether a RIDDOR report is required.
Example 2: Return to Work Date Exceeds 7 Days — No RIDDOR Record
An employee injures their back at work on 5 March and returns to work on 17 March (12 days later). The return to work date is recorded in the system, but no RIDDOR record has been created. Because the return to work date is more than 6 days after the incident and no RIDDOR record exists, the notification fires, prompting the recipient to create a RIDDOR record if the incident qualifies under the regulations.
Example 3: RIDDOR Record Created But Missing HSE Reference
An injury occurred on 10 February. A RIDDOR record has been created against the Incident Record, but the HSE Reference field has not been filled in. The notification is sent, prompting the recipient to complete the RIDDOR submission to the HSE and populate the reference field.
Troubleshooting
Symptom: The 7 day notification is not being sent for an incident that appears to qualify. Cause: One or more of the four base conditions is not met on the Incident Record (e.g., the person is not flagged as an employee, or the incident is not marked as a lost time accident). Resolution: Open the Incident Record and verify that all four base fields are correctly populated: Lost Time Accident = Yes, Injury Is Work Related = Yes, Person Involved = Yes, Person Is Employee = Yes.
Symptom: The notification fires, but the assigned recipient says they are not receiving emails. Cause: The user's email address in their profile may be missing or incorrect, or the user has been deleted from Assure. Resolution: Navigate to Settings > Users, locate the assigned recipient, and confirm their email address is valid and their account is active.
Symptom: Attempting to delete a user triggers an error saying they are in use. Cause: The user is assigned as the 7 Day Incident Notification Recipient. Resolution: Navigate to Settings > System Configuration > System Settings, clear or reassign the 7 Day Incident Notification Recipient field, save, then retry the user deletion.
Symptom: You cannot find the 'Enable 7 day incident notification' option in System Settings. Cause: Your user account does not have the Manage System Settings Supervisor Privilege. Resolution: Contact your Assure Administrator to have the required Supervisor Privilege assigned to your user account.
FAQ
Q: Can more than one person receive the 7 Day Incident Notification? A: The system-level setting only supports one designated recipient. To notify additional people, set up a supplementary filter-based email notification targeting incidents that are lost time accidents created within the last 7 days. See "How to Create Standard and Filter-Based Email Notifications" in Related Articles.
Q: Does the notification send once or repeatedly? A: The article does not specify the exact send frequency. If you need clarification on whether the notification resends daily, contact your Customer Success Manager.
Q: What is the HSE Reference and why is it required? A: The HSE Reference is the unique identifier provided by the Health and Safety Executive when a RIDDOR incident has been submitted and acknowledged. Without this reference, the system has no confirmation that the incident was successfully reported, so the notification continues to fire.
Q: Does this notification apply to OSHA-reporting organisations? A: No. This notification is specifically designed for UK organisations operating under RIDDOR regulations. Organisations using OSHA Reportable incident regions should use the People, Injuries and Absences (OSHA 301) module instead.
Q: What happens if the return to work date is recorded within 6 days? A: If the return to work date is 6 days or fewer after the date of incident, Trigger A and Trigger B do not apply. The notification will only fire if the RIDDOR record is missing the HSE Reference (Trigger C), assuming all four base conditions are still met.
AI Metadata
- Product Area: Assure — System Configuration, Incident Record
- User Role: Assure Administrator, Health and Safety Manager
- Tags: 7 Day Incident Notification, RIDDOR compliance, lost time accident, HSE Reference, return to work date, RIDDOR record, system settings, system configuration, incident notification, RIDDOR reportable, workplace injury, safety reporting
- Version/Region: Assure (all versions); UK/RIDDOR Reportable regions
- Important Synonyms: 7-day notification, 7 day reportable incident notification, RIDDOR 7 day alert, incident follow-up notification, HSE Reference notification
- Suggested Embedding Keywords: enable 7 day incident notification, RIDDOR compliance Assure, lost time accident notification, HSE Reference missing, return to work date Assure, 7 day notification system settings, RIDDOR record not created, Assure RIDDOR notification, configure incident notification Assure
- Relevant Modules: Incident Record (primary), System Configuration. Cross-module note: this feature is configured in System Configuration (System Settings) and triggers based on data fields within the Incident Record module. The RIDDOR sub-module within the Incident Record must also be active and correctly configured for Triggers B and C to be actionable.