Injuries, symptoms and statistics for handling objects — Reference Guide

Scope: objects only. This guidance covers the handling of inanimate objects, materials and loads.

Object handling can affect the back, neck, shoulders, arms, hands, knees and other lower-limb areas. A dropped object can also injure a bystander. The possible harm depends on the full task, load and surroundings.

Sudden injuries and developing symptoms

• A strain can involve muscle or tendon; a sprain affects a ligament.
• Sharp edges or rough packaging can cause cuts and bruises.
• A falling load, moving trolley or trapped hand or foot can cause a crush injury or fracture.
• Repeated demands can contribute to musculoskeletal disorder (MSD) symptoms, including aching or discomfort developing over time.

These examples do not diagnose a particular pain or prove that one posture caused it. Report symptoms early through the local route and ask for the work and controls to be reviewed. Do not dismiss discomfort because the objects are light or because there was no single accident. Follow local first-aid and health-support arrangements where needed.

Look for factors working together

• Force and load: difficult start or stop effort, unknown mass, large size, unstable contents, poor handholds, sharp or slippery surfaces.
• Position and reach: holding away from the body, high placement, low collection points, twisting or restricted space.
• Work pattern: repetition, long duration, fixed pace, inadequate recovery and time pressure.
• Environment: uneven or wet floors, slopes, thresholds, doors, poor light and other people using the route.
• Individual factors: experience, capability, fatigue, health changes and any agreed adjustments.

The following statistics concern Great Britain in 2024/25. The year, population and collection method matter when interpreting them.

Employer-reported non-fatal injuries

HSE recorded 59,219 employee non-fatal injuries reported by employers under RIDDOR in 2024/25. Handling, lifting or carrying accounted for 17% of those reported injuries. That is a proportion of a defined reported-accident total, not a claim that 17% of all workers were injured. See HSE non-fatal injury statistics.

HSE also estimates that 680,000 workers sustained a non-fatal workplace injury in 2024/25 from Labour Force Survey self-reports. That broader self-reported injury estimate is a different measure from the 59,219 employee injuries reported by employers under RIDDOR; it is not the denominator for the highlighted 17%.

Self-reported musculoskeletal ill health

The separate Labour Force Survey estimate was 511,000 workers with new or longstanding work-related musculoskeletal disorders in 2024/25, with 7.1 million working days lost. These MSD figures cover work-related MSDs from all causes, rather than object handling alone. See page 5 of HSE summary statistics for Great Britain 2025.

Use the figures carefully

• Do not add the reported-injury count to the MSD estimate: the measures and populations differ and may overlap.
• Do not describe every MSD as a manual-handling injury.
• Do not treat a workplace's lack of recorded accidents as proof that the present task is safe.
• Use worker feedback, actual task assessment and review of controls to decide what needs changing locally.