Major Accident Hazards

Major accidents in hazardous industries can result in catastrophic loss of life, environmental harm, and severe operational damage. This Major Accident Hazards (MAH) course equips learners with the knowledge to recognise how such events occur, understand the controls that prevent them, and contribute to a robust safety culture.

At a glance

45 minutes
15 assessment questions
No pre-requisites
80% pass mark

Accreditation

Chorus Training certificate

£40.00

Per unit - exc. VAT

Why this course matters

In 2024/25, 124 workers were killed in work-related accidents in the UK — with nearly half of these in construction and agriculture.
Offshore and other hazardous sectors continue to face high-risk conditions where a single failure can cause catastrophic harm.
Learning from historic incidents has shaped modern safety practices and legislation such as the Safety Case Regulations and PFEER.

Overview

Learners will explore offshore operations, the legislative frameworks that govern hazardous industries, and the causes and consequences of historic incidents such as Piper Alpha. The course introduces core principles including safety cases, barrier models, and asset integrity management, showing how individual responsibility and proactive safety behaviours play a vital role in preventing major accidents.
Who should take this course?
This training is suitable for:
- Personnel working in hazardous or high-risk environments (offshore, oil and gas, maritime, energy, construction)
- Supervisors and team leaders with safety or operational responsibilities
- Safety professionals and permit-to-work approvers
- Contractors and technicians involved in high-hazard activities
Learning outcomes

By the end of this course, learners will be able to:
LO1: Identify offshore work environments and activities.
LO2: Identify offshore work environments and activities.
LO3: Identify the different legislative frameworks for hazardous industries.
LO4: Explain the types of major accident hazards present across hazardous industries.
LO5: Describe key major accidents in hazardous industries and how they shaped today’s safety practices.
LO6: Describe the types of work activities performed across hazardous industries and explain their associated risks.
LO7: Explain how minor incidents can escalate into major accidents.
LO8: Describe the purpose of temporary refuge and evacuation methods offshore.
LO9: Analyse industry safety statistics and performance indicators.
LO10: Explain what a Safety Case is and why it’s required.
LO11: Recognise how activities and personal responsibility contribute to the Safety Case.
LO12: Describe how barrier models are used to demonstrate potential weaknesses in safety systems.
LO13: Identify why asset integrity is critical to safety.
LO14: Describe employer and employee responsibilities in contributing to asset integrity.
Course content
This course combines high-impact visuals, clear narration, and interactive activities to guide learners through:
- Offshore environments, operations, and terminology
- Key UK and international safety legislation
- Major accident hazards and landmark case studies (Piper Alpha, Texas City, Grenfell Tower)
- How minor incidents escalate into major events and how to prevent them
- Emergency response: temporary refuge, evacuation, and recovery procedures
- Safety performance indicators (lagging vs leading) and continuous improvement
- The Safety Case framework, barrier models (Bowtie, Swiss Cheese, LOPA), and risk visualisation
- Asset integrity, process safety, and responsibilities for inspection and reporting
Assessment & certification

This Major Accident Hazards training course ends with a 15-question multiple choice assessment with a downloadable certificate.
User certificates, training progress and results are all stored centrally in your LMS and can be accessed any time to reprint certificates, check and set pass marks, and act as proof of a commitment to ongoing legal compliance.
What does my certificate include?

Your Major Accident Hazard training certificate includes your name, company name (if applicable), name of course taken, date of completion, expiry date, and stamps of approval or accreditations by recognised authorities.
Note: If using SCORM delivery via a third-party LMS, certification will need to be generated within your host LMS.