Warning over ‘accident crisis’ as East Midlands accidental deaths rate rises
Accidents have become the top cause of preventable death for people under 40, with more than half of fatal accidents taking place in the home
Last updated 14th Nov 2024
The number of accidental deaths in the UK has reached an all-time high as people are “substantially more likely” to suffer a serious accident than they were 20 years ago, data has revealed.
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) warned the country is “facing an accident crisis” after data from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland showed a UK-wide rise of 42% in accidental death over the last decade, with more 20,000 people killed each year.
Accidents have become the top cause of preventable death for people under 40, with more than half of fatal accidents taking place in the home.
The study also found that accidents cost the UK almost £12 billion every year – £6 billion in NHS care and £5.9 billion in lost working days.
Data shows East Midland's rate of accidental deaths:
Accidental deaths: 1,670
Population: 4,934,939
Rate per 100,000 people: 33.84
Compared to all of England: +15%
Accident victim:
Accident victim Carly Till from Wellingborough had to miss work, and eventually attended A&E for treatment after her accident at home.
The care manager spilt hot oil on her hand leading to severe burns, after she dropped it after pre-heating it in an oven.
"Good job I managed to take up wedding ring off, as my hand swelled up and it would have been stuck."
She added: “I’ve not been able to drive to appointments and it's affected my work. I should really have attended A&E sooner."
"Trying to keep clean enough to do my job, just wasn't going to be possible, so I missed out on a few weeks of work."
She feels glad she had some understanding of what to do, which is run the burn under cold water for a long time.
"If I hadn't run it under cold water, the damage would have been a lot more extensive."
What did the study find?
The report showed accident-related hospital admissions for serious injuries have risen by 48% in the last two decades in England alone – with more than 740,000 people admitted after an accident in 2022/23.
Accidental deaths have risen by 60% in Scotland, 42% in Wales and 67% in Northern Ireland since 2013.
Almost half (46%) of accidental deaths in 2022 resulted from falls, the study found, with more than a quarter (26%) from poisoning, and 7% due to a road traffic accident or transport related.
More than 4.4 million bed days were used to treat patients with accident-related injuries in England last year, costing the NHS an estimated £4.6 billion.
A bed day means a person is admitted as an inpatient, confined to a bed and stays overnight in hospital.
Across the UK, accidents led to around 5.2 million bed days, costing the NHS an estimated £5.4 billion over the last year.
Accidents resulted in around seven million A&E visits in the UK last year, costing a further £613 million, and taking the total cost of accidents to the NHS to at least £6 billion annually.
Almost 29 million working days were lost to accidents across the UK in the year 2022/23 – 10 times more than were lost due to strikes.
The combined cost to UK businesses is £5.9 billion, the report said.
What needs to be done to tackle accidental deaths?
RoSPA called on the Government to implement a National Accident Prevention Strategy to “save lives, boost the economy and free up capacity in the NHS”.
The society’s chief executive Becky Hickman said: “We must take action now to stop further preventable deaths and serious injuries – accidents are avoidable and do not need to happen.
“The UK is facing an accident crisis.
“We are all substantially more likely to suffer a serious accident today than we were 20 years ago.
“Even those who have never been involved in an accident are still suffering, as increasing numbers of accidents are choking the UK economy and engulfing the NHS – taking up bed space, money, time and resources that could be directed to other serious illnesses.”