How do I work out the rate of recordable work-related accidents for disclosure B9 of the European Union (EU) voluntary standard for small companies (VSME)?
Divide the number of recordable work accidents in the year by the total hours all employees worked, then multiply by 200,000. That gives accidents for each 100 full-time workers, assuming 2,000 hours a year each. VSME is the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group's Voluntary standard for non-listed micro-, small- and medium-sized undertakings.
What B9 asks
- The number and rate of recordable work-related accidents among your employees.
- The number of fatalities from work-related injuries and work-related ill health.
What recordable means
The standard says a work-related accident is an event that leads to physical or mental harm during work. Recordable means diagnosed by a physician or other licensed health care professional. Injuries that need no more than first aid are generally not recordable.
Why 200,000
The standard assumes one full-time worker works 2,000 hours a year. 100 workers then work 200,000 hours. So the rate reads as accidents for each 100 full-time workers over a year. Like a speedometer, it lets a small unit and a big unit be compared on one scale.
The formula and the standard's example
- Rate = number of work-related accidents in the year / total hours worked in a year by all employees x 200,000. The standard's formula says work-related accidents, while B9 asks for recordable ones, so count the recordable ones.
- Company A: 3 accidents, 40 employees, 40 x 2,000 = 80,000 hours. Rate = 3 / 80,000 x 200,000 = 7.5.
- If you cannot count the hours worked, the standard says you may estimate them from normal or standard hours of work.
Records that answer it
Accident register and doctor's or hospital notes for the count. Attendance or payroll hours for the denominator. Keep the register for every accident, even small ones, so you can show which were first aid only.
Example: a unit with 120 employees
- Hours: 120 x 2,000 = 240,000 hours (estimated from standard hours)
- Recordable accidents: 4
- Rate: 4 / 240,000 x 200,000 = 3.33
Numbers are an example. The standard's own example is 3 accidents among 40 employees, a rate of 7.5.
What Senseible does here
Senseible fills the energy and emissions disclosure from fuel invoices and electricity bills. This disclosure is not part of it today; it comes from your own registers and papers.
- What is the VSME standard?
- Employee turnover rate in the VSME
- Headcount or full-time equivalent employees
Last reviewed 2026-11-07. Facts are from the standard's own text, with the paragraph numbers named in the source line. The European Commission adopted its own standard for voluntary use in a Delegated Regulation of 3 July 2026, which is not in force until it is published in the Official Journal and may differ from this text, so ask your buyer which one it means. Our own readings are marked as such.