Anti-Slip Flooring and Wet Floor Safety: Preventing the UK's Most Common Workplace Accident
Slips and Trips: The UK’s Most Common Workplace Injury
Slips and trips account for more major injuries in UK workplaces than any other accident type, according to the Health and Safety Executive. In a given year, they cause tens of thousands of injuries ranging from bruises and sprains to fractured bones and head injuries. They are also responsible for significant time lost from work and, in the most serious cases, fatalities.
The legal framework is clear. Regulation 12 of the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 requires that every floor in a workplace shall be suitable for its purpose, kept in good condition, and kept free from any article or substance that may cause a person to slip, trip, or fall. This places a positive duty on employers to prevent slipping hazards—not merely to react to them after an incident occurs.
The Hierarchy of Controls for Slip Risks
As with all workplace hazards, slip risks should be addressed using the hierarchy of controls—eliminating or reducing the risk at source before relying on personal protective measures.
- Eliminate the source of contamination: Fix leaking pipes, improve drainage, or redesign processes that introduce water or other liquids to walking surfaces.
- Prevent contamination reaching the floor: Entrance matting to capture water and debris from footwear; drip trays under machinery; leak diverters for roof leaks.
- Improve floor surface grip: Anti-slip matting, grip tape, or floor coatings where wet conditions cannot be eliminated.
- Manage the hazard: Wet floor signs, prompt cleaning, segregating pedestrians from wet areas during cleaning operations.
- Footwear: Appropriate slip-resistant footwear as a supplementary measure—never the primary control.
Entrance Matting
The single most effective intervention for the majority of commercial buildings is well-specified entrance matting. Research published by the Health and Safety Executive and the British Institute of Cleaning Science suggests that up to 80% of the dirt and moisture tracked into a building comes in on people's shoes—and that a properly specified mat system can capture most of it before it spreads to the wider floor area.
For effective dirt and moisture removal, entrance matting should extend at least 1.5 metres in the direction of travel—long enough for a person to take at least three full steps on the mat. For high-traffic entrances or particularly wet conditions, 3 metres or more may be appropriate.
Entrance matting is typically specified in zones: a scraper mat at the threshold to dislodge gross debris, followed by an absorbent mat to remove residual moisture. Mats must be recessed into the floor or have properly bevelled edges to eliminate a trip hazard of their own.
Anti-Fatigue Matting
Workers who stand for long periods on hard floor surfaces—in production lines, at checkouts, laboratory benches, or kitchen preparation areas—benefit from anti-fatigue matting. These mats are designed to reduce foot, leg, and lower-back discomfort from prolonged standing, but many also offer improved slip resistance compared to bare floors, particularly where grease or moisture is present. Drainage anti-fatigue mats, with an open-grid construction, allow liquids to pass through rather than pooling on the surface.
Drainage Matting
In wet process areas—commercial kitchens, food processing facilities, car washes, and swimming pool surrounds—drainage matting is essential. Open-grid or perforated mat designs allow water and other liquids to drain away from the standing surface, keeping workers clear of standing water. Drainage matting must be compatible with the cleaning chemicals used in the area and should be sized to provide continuous coverage without gaps that could cause tripping.
Grip Tape and Anti-Slip Strips for Steps and Ramps
Steps and ramps present particular slip risks because they combine a change in level with a walking surface that may be wet or worn smooth over time. Anti-slip strips—adhesive-backed abrasive tape—applied to the leading edge of each step provide a significant improvement in grip at low cost. They are available in various widths, lengths, and colours including high-visibility yellow to make step edges visible as well as grippy.
Floor marking tape can also be used to demarcate hazardous areas, walkways, and pedestrian routes, combining visual hazard awareness with a modest improvement in surface texture.
Wet Floor Signs
When floors are wet—whether from cleaning, spillage, or leaks—wet floor signs should be deployed immediately and kept in place until the surface is dry. An A-frame wet floor sign should be stable enough not to be knocked over easily, and positioned to be visible from all directions of approach to the hazard. Signs are a temporary measure only: they manage the risk while the source is addressed, not a permanent substitute for a dry floor.
Every workplace should have enough wet floor signs to cover likely simultaneous hazard scenarios. Cleaning contractors should carry their own signs and use them throughout the cleaning process.
Leak Diverters for Roof and Pipe Leaks
Roof leaks are a significant and often underestimated cause of wet floors in commercial and industrial premises. A ceiling or pipe leak creates an unpredictable wet floor hazard that may appear suddenly and in a location not normally considered a wet area. Proprietary leak diverters—fitted to the ceiling above the leak—channel water into a collection point such as a bucket or drainage point, preventing it from dripping onto the floor. This converts an uncontrolled floor hazard into a managed collection task. Leak diverters are available to suit various ceiling types and flow rates. See our leak control and diverter range for options.
Footwear: SRA, SRB, and SRC Ratings
Where slip-resistant footwear is specified as part of the control measures, the EN ISO 20345 standard provides a framework for comparing performance. Footwear is tested on two surfaces:
- SRA: Tested on ceramic tile with sodium lauryl sulphate (soapy water)
- SRB: Tested on smooth steel with glycerol
- SRC: Passes both SRA and SRB tests—the highest rating
SRC-rated footwear offers the broadest slip resistance, but the right choice still depends on the specific hazards present in your workplace. Footwear ratings should be considered alongside—not instead of—matting and floor surface improvements.
Floor Safety Products from Cocus
Cocus supplies a range of floor safety matting suitable for entrances, wet areas, and anti-fatigue applications, as well as leak control and diverter solutions for managing roof and pipe leaks. If you are reviewing your slip risk controls, our range covers the key product categories needed to implement an effective hierarchy of controls.