Risk of Fatalities caused by Trees
Trees are generally considered to be a major hazard and to pose a significant risk of harm or injury. The actual risk of a fatality caused by a tree or part of a tree failing is very low compared to other risks encountered in ‘normal life’.
Fatalities caused by Trees
The average number of fatalities resulting from trees or parts of trees failing between 1998 and 2004 was 6 per year.
Of these fatalities, half of them occurred on privately owned land to which the public have permissive rights of way only.
The annual risk to any one individual of being killed by a tree, whilst being in public open space is 1:20,000,000 or 0.05 per million (i.e. 3 deaths per 60 million head of population)
The following table, prepared by the Health and Safety Executive, compares the calculated risks that are experienced in ‘normal life’.
Fatalities in ‘normal life’
| Annual risk of death | Annual risk | Annual risk per million |
All causes, aged 45-64 (England and Wales, 2003) (1) | 1 in 190 | 5230 |
All causes, aged 30-44 (England and Wales, 2003) (1) | 1 in 940 | 1060 |
Accidents in the home, all ages (England and Wales, 2004) (3) | 1 in 17,000 | 60 |
Road accidents (Great Britain, 2005) (2) | 1 in 18,000 | 55 |
Accidents in the home, aged 15-64
(England and Wales, 2004) (3) | 1 in 25,000 | 40 |
Injuries to all employees in different industries
(Great Britain, average 2001/02-2005/06) (4) | 1 in 140,000 | 7 |
Injuries to employees in service industries
(Great Britain, average 2001/02-2005/06) (4) | 1 in 330,000 | 3 |
Lightning (5) | 1 in 19,000,000 | 0.053 |
(1) Office for National Statistics Focus on Health:
(2) Department for Transport Road Casualties Great Britain: 2005 (Table 31)
(3) Office for National Statistics Mortality Statistics – Injury and poisoning
(4) Health and Safety Commission Statistics of Fatal Injuries 2005/06
(5) Deaths and injuries caused by lightning in the United Kingdom: analyses of two databases, D. M. Elsom, Tornado and Storm Research Organisation, 2000 Note : Annual risks are given to 2 significant figures.