Be careful with DIY activities, ACC says

PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES

As winter looms, many do-it-yourselfers are rushing to get their gardens tidied, spouting cleaned and properties spruced up before the weather turns foul.

But the Accident Compensation Corporation is urging Otago DIYers to take their chores more slowly and carefully this year, after recording 5115 DIY injury-related claims in the region over the past five years — 995 of them in 2022 alone.

The cost of helping those people recover over the past five years was $6.6 million.

ACC data shows DIY activities come with a high risk of injury.

Nationwide in 2022, ACC accepted 19,300 DIY injury claims, which cost $30 million to help people recover — the highest claims cost over the past five years.

ACC injury prevention leader James Whitaker said now was the perfect time to complete outstanding DIY jobs, but he encouraged people to take a moment to assess the risks of injury.

"No-one wants to start doing a DIY job and then end up in Accident and Emergency with an injury.

"We know that many people will use this time as an opportunity to do some odd jobs around the house and garden.

"We’re challenging people to have a serious think about the risks before they start their DIY project."

Mr Whitaker said about 90% of all DIY injuries were not random events.

"They are predictable and therefore preventable.

"Our top tip for DIY safety is to slow down," he said.

"Many accidents in the home happen simply because people are rushing.

"These can be prevented by simply slowing down and stopping to assess the risks."

Most of the DIY-related injuries claimed nationally in 2022 were soft-tissue injuries (11,181), followed by laceration/puncture/sting injuries (4846), foreign body in orifice/eye injuries (1279) and fractures/dislocations (582).

The most common parts of the body hurt in DIY injuries were the back or spine (3557), fingers and thumbs (3098), shoulders (1856), hands and wrists (1768) and eyes (1615).

The leading age groups for DIY injuries in 2022 were those over 64 (4848), 50-54 (2077) and 55-59 (1953).

Mr Whitaker said men were about three times more likely to hurt themselves in a DIY injury than women.

"We know that when we get hurt, it affects our family, friends, workmates and others too.

"We want New Zealanders to have that satisfaction of completing DIY jobs around their home and stay safe and injury free in the process."

john.lewis@odt.co.nz