Vehicles Still Leading Cause of Workplace Fatalities

The latest Key Work Health and Safety Statistics Australia 2025 report from Safe Work Australia has just been released. It’s a powerful reminder of the risks Australian workers face every day.

In 2024, 188 workers lost their lives due to traumatic injuries, and vehicles were involved in 66% of those fatalities. That’s 124 deaths where a vehicle – whether a truck, loader, tractor, quad bike, or road vehicle – was directly involved.

Top Causes of Worker Fatalities (accounting for two-thirds)

• • Vehicle incidents 79 workers (42%)
  • Falls from a height 24 workers (13%)
  • Being hit by moving objects 17 workers (9%)

Most vehicle-related deaths stemmed from single-vehicle incidents (72%), and young workers under 25 were disproportionately affected, with 83% of their fatalities involving a vehicle.

High-Risk Industries

Six industries accounted for 80% of all traumatic injury fatalities and 61% of serious workers’ compensation claims:

• • Agriculture, forestry and fishing
  • Transport, postal and warehousing
  • Construction
  • Manufacturing
  • Health care and social assistance
  • Public administration and safety

The Transport and Agriculture sectors continue to show the highest fatality rates per 100,000 workers, with Mining fatalities up 39% compared to the 5-year average.

Serious Claims – Stress, Slips & Mental Health

In 2023-24, there were 146,700 serious workers’ compensation claims – more than 400 per day. The most common causes?

• • Body stressing 34.5%
  • Falls, trips and slips 21.8%
  • Mental stress 12%

Mental health claims are rising, with median time lost nearly five times higher than other injuries. Gender differences also persist:

• • Women’s claims involve more mental health conditions (17.2%)
  • Men’s claims involve more physical trauma (17.7%)
  • Median compensation for men is 20.4% higher than for women.

What This Means for Australian Workplaces

Whether you’re managing a fleet, operating heavy machinery, or overseeing high-risk environments, proactive safety measures are essential across all industries.

Our onsite drug and alcohol testing solutions include 24/7, 365-day nationwide testing services and tailored awareness training programs for both employees and supervisors – are designed to help organisations reduce risk, meet WHS obligations, and protect their people.

Click to View the full 2025 WHS report.

Contact our team to discuss your safety strategy.