In Plain English
Quick Answer
An incident where a worker almost got hurt but didn't — a warning sign that must be investigated.
Definition
Definition
A near miss is an unplanned event that did not result in injury, illness, or damage but had the potential to do so. Reporting and investigating near misses allows organizations to identify and correct hazards before they cause serious harm. OSHA encourages near-miss reporting as a leading safety indicator, and many contractors include near-miss tracking in their safety programs.
Context
Why It Matters in Bidding
A contractor's near-miss reporting culture is a leading indicator that owners and sureties weigh during prequalification, and a strong safety record helps win negotiated and best-value work. Estimators rarely price near misses directly, but a poor safety history raises insurance and bond costs that erode every bid. Tracking and acting on near misses lowers the EMR and recordable rates that drive those overhead numbers.
Example
Example
After a worker reports a load swinging close to a crew, the superintendent logs the near miss, retrains the rigging crew, and adjusts the lift plan before any injury or schedule loss occurs.
See Also
Related Terms
FAQ
Questions Contractors Ask
Why should contractors report near misses if no one was hurt?
Near misses reveal hazards before they cause injury, so reporting them lets a contractor fix conditions cheaply and proactively. They also feed safety metrics that owners and insurers review during prequalification. A documented near-miss program signals a mature safety culture, which can translate into lower insurance costs and stronger bid competitiveness.
How do near misses affect a contractor's insurance and bid costs?
Acting on near misses helps prevent recordable incidents, which keeps the experience modification rate and incident rates low. Those rates directly influence workers' compensation premiums and bondability, both of which load into a contractor's overhead and markup. A clean record lets a firm carry lower indirect costs and bid more aggressively.
Are contractors required by OSHA to report near misses?
OSHA does not mandate near-miss reporting the way it requires recording certain injuries and illnesses, but it strongly encourages it as a leading safety indicator. Many contractors build near-miss tracking into their safety programs voluntarily, and owners often require evidence of such a program in prequalification and project safety plans.
Need more than definitions?
Get AI-powered bid alerts, automated form filling, and proposal drafting.
Start Free Trial