The most fundamental difference between the two methods of work is the fall potential. A fall arrest system allows the operative to fall and then ‘arrests’ the fall. A fall restraint system (when used correctly) prevents the fall from occurring. Both fall restraint and fall arrest systems are personal fall protection systems and must be designed to the British standard BS 8437.
| Fall Restraint | Fall Arrest | |
| How does it prevent a fatal fall? | It prevents you from falling and reaching a fall hazard with the use of a body holding device connected to a safe anchor point. | It protects you after a fall by stopping the fall in progress through a body holding device connected to a safe anchor point. |
| Required safety equipment | Custom-fitted height safety equipment. | Custom-fitted height safety equipment. |
| Professional training needed | Yes, annual leading edge training is required. | Yes, annual leading edge training is required. |
| Inspection guidelines | All equipment must be inspected, properly worn, and cared for before and after every use. | All equipment must be inspected, properly worn, and cared for before and after every use. |
| Potential for injury | Low | High |
| Example personal protective equipment | A full-body fall restraint harness and lanyard are secured at a set length from a suitable anchor point. | A full body harness and fall arrest lanyard securely attached to a suitable anchor point. |
Deciding between fall restraint and fall arrest comes down to one key question: Can you stop the worker from reaching the fall hazard altogether, or do you need to protect them if a fall happens?
Here’s a practical guide to help you choose:
If there’s any doubt that a restraint system will prevent a fall if the worker could potentially reach the hazard, you must treat it as a fall arrest scenario. This includes having a rescue plan in place before work begins.
Understanding the theory is important, but seeing how it applies on-site makes the difference. Here’s how fall protection decisions play out in practice:
Steelworkers move across an incomplete frame with variable distances from open edges throughout the day. A fixed-length restraint cannot adjust to the changing work geometry.
System Type: Fall Arrest
Why: Workers must get close to or beyond edges, and a restraint system alone cannot guarantee fall prevention.
Protection Methods: Likely involves inertia reels and temporary horizontal lifelines to maintain safety as the worker moves.
A maintenance operative needs to service HVAC units 3 metres from the roof edge. The anchor point can be positioned centrally, and a fixed-length 2-metre lanyard ensures the operative cannot physically reach the edge.
System Type: Fall Restraint
Why: The system prevents access to the hazard rather than managing a fall.
Rescue Plan: Not required specifically for the restraint system, though a site-wide rescue plan should still be in place as a precaution.
Working in a restraint significantly reduces the risk of an operative falling and therefore all the issues related to fall hazards. Fall restraint also enables an operative safe access and mobility necessary to reach the leading edge to complete their work tasks whilst being prevented from potentially falling from height.
There are three main types of restraint equipment found when working at height on a construction site:
There are two main types of fall arrest equipment found when working at height.
Self-retractable fall arrester: self-retracting lifeline, fall arrest block, inertia reel. This is an extendable lanyard which has a self-braking and locking function and an automatic return facility, as well as minimising the impact force generated in a fall. This allows the operative freedom and movement in a task.
Fall restraint greatly reduces the load (pull) applied to the operator’s body compared to using a self-retractable fall arrester.
It is important for the supervisor to assume a good point of observation.
Keep in mind that The Work at Height regulations stipulate a supervisor may not put themselves in danger when choosing their point of observation. For example, observing gutter work by posting oneself on a roof might be acceptable if the supervisor is properly tethered and has full vision of the work being done. But if operatives dip below the eaves, it would be imprudent for a supervisor to move to the edge of the roof in order to see the work. That would be putting himself in danger just to maintain his point of observation.
Although all the details of the work might not necessarily be observable from the ground, such a scenario would dictate that the supervisor move to ground level in order to observe work done on the eaves. Perhaps if the building had a second-floor window with a decent view, a supervisor could move to that room. The point is, supervisors need to watch out for their own safety as well as that of their workers. They are just as prone to falling from height if they are careless in determining a point of observation.
It is the duty of every employer to include guidelines for a working at height rescue plan. Rescue operations are undertaken when an operative is injured, suspended in a harness after a fall or stuck on an elevated platform. It is the responsibility of the company to make sure the rescue plan can be executed properly in an easy and timely manner.
Rescue planning is an area which many companies assume is not needed, due to implementing proper planning and safety procedures to significantly reduce the potential of accidents. It is, however, not possible to prevent every single accident. There will be a time when equipment fails, and operatives make mistakes. It is during these times that a rescue plan needs to work to reduce unfavourable outcomes. Remember, relying on the emergency services is not a rescue plan!
Some fundamental guidelines and requirements for work at heights have been provided here. It’s not possible to cover everything. If your company does conduct working at height activities, it is your responsibility to be aware of the safety regulations and procedures are correctly implemented. Everyone has a duty to themselves and the surrounding delegates to be competent and suitably trained for the task.
Fall restraint, by its very nature, is safer when implemented, as no fall actually takes place. Fall arrest means that the individual has actually fallen, and this, by itself, has inherent dangers of injury, not only from the fall itself, but also from the forces on the harness, and the possibility of suspension trauma, which can take place if the individual is not rescued quickly enough.
Not specifically for the fall restraint, although having one in place can only be advantageous, especially on a site-wide level. The legal necessity for having a rescue plan, as outlined by the Work at Height Regulations 2005, relates specifically to the necessity of fall arrest equipment being used, as this has the possibility of having a suspended casualty that needs to be rescued.
Yes. The same harness can be used, and the difference lies in the rigging of the harness and the lanyard to which the harness is attached. For fall restraint, a fixed-length or adjustable restraint lanyard is used. For fall arrest, an energy-absorbing lanyard or inertia reel must be used. Regardless, the harness must be inspected prior to use and maintained in accordance with manufacturer recommendations and EN 361 requirements.
If the restraint system is set up too long, anchored in the wrong place, or the swing-fall risk isn’t considered, the worker can still reach the edge and fall, but without the equipment needed to stop or manage that fall safely. Poorly rigged restraint systems are one of the most dangerous situations in work at height. That’s why proper training and thorough pre-use checks are essential.
Yes. Under the Work at Height Regulations 2005, work at height must be properly planned, supervised, and carried out by competent persons. Competent persons are those who have been properly trained. Those using restraint systems need to know how to rig, adjust, and inspect their restraint systems, while those in supervisory positions need to know how to verify that the system has been properly implemented.
Leading Edge is an expert trainer for work at height. Become a competent person by enrolling in our Level 1 Operatives Course or our height safety managers training course.
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