This is one of the most common and most awkward questions employers face around accident reporting.
An employee is injured. An entry is made. Someone then asks:
“Can I see what’s been written?”
Or worse: “Can everyone see this?”
The answer is not as simple as yes or no, and getting it wrong is how accident books quietly turn into GDPR problems.
This guide explains what employees are entitled to see, what they are not, and how UK employers should handle access requests without exposing themselves.
The Short Version
Employees do not have a general right to view the entire accident book.
They do have rights in relation to their own personal data. Those are not the same thing.
Understanding that distinction matters.
Why Accident Book Access Is Restricted
Accident books almost always contain:
names of individuals
details of injuries
health information
sometimes witness details
That information is protected under data protection law. Employers are responsible for ensuring it is not disclosed unnecessarily.
Allowing unrestricted access to accident book entries, particularly paper books kept on site, risks exposing other people’s personal and health data. That is not compliant.
From a legal perspective, accident books are internal records, not shared logs.
What Employees Are Entitled To See
Employees are entitled to access personal data that relates to them.
That means:
they can request a copy of the accident book entry about their own accident
they can ask what information is held about them
they can request corrections if factual details are wrong
This right usually arises through a subject access request, formal or informal.
What they are entitled to receive is their data, not everyone else’s.
What Employees Are Not Entitled To See
Employees are not entitled to:
browse the accident book
view entries relating to other people
see witness statements involving others
access management notes or internal follow-up documents
Even if an employee was present at the incident, that does not automatically give them a right to see records about other individuals.
Sharing that information without a lawful basis can create a data protection breach.
Casual Requests vs Formal Requests
Many problems start with casual requests.
An employee asks to “have a look at the book” or “see what was written”. A well-meaning manager hands it over to avoid conflict.
That is where things go wrong.
Access should be handled deliberately. If an employee wants to see information about their accident, the correct approach is to:
confirm what they are asking for
provide a copy of the relevant entry
redact third-party information where necessary
Handing over the whole book is rarely appropriate.
Paper Accident Books Are Risky Here
This is one of the areas where paper systems cause repeated issues.
Paper accident books are often:
kept in accessible locations
handled by multiple people
difficult to redact properly
shared informally without records of access
That makes it far harder to control who sees what.
Digital systems make it easier to provide access to specific entries without exposing unrelated data, but the principle is the same regardless of format: access must be controlled.
Transparency Without Over-Sharing
Employers sometimes over-share in the name of transparency.
Transparency does not mean everyone sees everything. It means employees understand:
that accidents are recorded
why they are recorded
how their data is used
how they can access information about themselves
Clear communication prevents most disputes before they start.
What Regulators Expect
Both the Information Commissioner's Office and the Health and Safety Executive expect employers to:
protect personal and health data
restrict access appropriately
provide individuals with access to their own data on request
They do not expect accident books to be open documents.
Why This Becomes a Problem During Disputes
Access questions usually surface when something has already gone wrong:
a grievance
a claim
an inspection
a breakdown in trust
At that point, informal practices are scrutinised.
If accident books have been openly accessible, or if entries about multiple people have been shared casually, that history is hard to defend.
Key Takeaway
Employees can see their own accident record. They cannot see everyone else’s.
Accident books are not communal logs. They are controlled records containing sensitive information. Employers are expected to manage access carefully, not casually.
Getting this right avoids unnecessary conflict, protects personal data, and keeps accident reporting where it belongs: as a factual record, not a point of dispute.