Abstract
Inspectorates of the Health and Safety Executive are notified of work accidents ranging from minor to catastrophic, and investigate a subset of around 5 per cent with a view to possible enforcement action. Drawing on empirical data on the Factory, Agricultural, and Railway Inspectorates, the authors discusss how the social and psychological impact of accidents affect the work of safety inspectors. Reactive enforcement following accidents has important advantages over proactive enforcement, but responses to major accidents and disasters may consume extensive resources at the expense of other enforcement activity.