Managing fire and vehicle risk in Ireland’s waste and recycling sector

Safeguarding your assets, your people and your customers | 4 minute read

Waste and recycling operations sit at the intersection of heavy plant, vehicle movements, public interface and environmental exposure. When something goes wrong, the consequences can be serious, from injury and enforcement action to major property damage and business interruption.

Key takeaways

1. The HSA reported 58 work-related fatalities in 2025¹, with machinery and vehicle related incidents among the leading causes, underlining the importance of workplace transport controls.

2. EPA guidance² for waste handling facilities sets out specific fire prevention measures for waste lithium ion batteries, including segregation and safe storage.

3. Joining up health and safety controls with insurance requirements helps reduce losses and improves claims readiness for property, liability and environmental exposures.

Why waste management safety matters

For many operators, the fastest growing concern is fire. The volume of lithium ion batteries in the waste stream is increasing³, and guidance for waste handling facilities highlights the need for specific storage, segregation and response measures.

The HSA reported 58 work-related fatalities in Ireland in 2025, with machinery and vehicle related incidents highlighted as leading causes.

Source: The Health and Safety Authority

16 fires were recorded at Irish waste facilities (2022–2023), with causes including lithium batteries, hot ashes and poor housekeeping.

Source: EPA State of the Environment Report 2024

The risk picture for waste operators in 2025 and 2026

Sector focus

The HSA Programme of Work for 2025 included campaigns on vehicles at work and fire prevention, and referenced inspection focus areas including waste and recycling sites.⁵

Lithium ion battery guidance

The EPA published guidance on the safe storage of waste lithium ion batteries at waste handling facilities, reflecting the growing fire risk associated with damaged or incorrectly stored batteries.⁶

Fire risk and lithium ion batteries in the waste stream

Lithium ion battery incidents can escalate quickly due to thermal runaway, toxic smoke and the potential for re-ignition. The EPA guidance is designed specifically for Irish waste handling settings and is a useful starting point for both safety controls and insurance conversations.

Segregate batteries at point of receipt and train staff to identify damaged, swollen or hot batteries.
Use a dedicated, clearly signed quarantine area with non-combustible surfaces and separation from other wastes.
Avoid crushing, compacting or puncturing batteries, and control the movement of batteries in the yard to prevent impact damage.
Review detection and suppression systems with your fire safety adviser and insurer, including CCTV coverage, alarms, access for emergency services and extinguishing media suitable for battery fires.
Strengthen housekeeping and combustible load management, especially around balers, shredders and storage bays.

Dublin Fire Brigade public guidance⁷ also notes that lithium ion batteries can present a fire risk when damaged, overcharged, submerged or short circuited, reinforcing the need for careful handling and storage.

Vehicles at work and plant are an insurance risk as well as a safety risk

Workplace transport incidents can lead to severe injuries, property damage and long operational disruption. Good controls also demonstrate mature risk management to insurers.

Design traffic routes to separate pedestrians and vehicles, and enforce one way systems where practical.
Control reversing. Use reversing aids, exclusion zones and trained banksmen for high risk manoeuvres.
Set site speed limits and apply them consistently across staff, contractors and visitors.
Maintain plant and vehicles and record inspections, defects and repairs.
Manage contractor drivers with induction, route rules and supervision, not just signage.

The HSA provides specific guidance on managing vehicles at work, including layout, separation and supervision controls.

Joining up environmental, liability and property exposures

Waste operators often carry exposures that span multiple policies. Aligning safety controls and insurance wording helps avoid gaps.

Property and business interruption: fire and smoke damage can shut down processing for extended periods. Review sums insured and business interruption calculations regularly.
Employers and public liability: injuries and third party impacts can follow vehicle incidents, slips, trips and contractor failures.
Environmental impairment: leaks, runoff and firewater can create pollution liabilities. Confirm where coverage sits and what conditions apply.
Motor and fleet: fleet downtime affects service delivery, and offsite incidents can create third party liability.

A joined up approach helps ensure that your safety statement, emergency plans and insurance schedules all describe the same operation.

Claims readiness for fires and serious incidents

When a fire or major incident happens, claims may be progressed faster when key information is available immediately.

Maintain an up to date asset register and stock values, and keep copies offsite.
Retain CCTV footage and access logs, and document the sequence of events.
Record emergency actions taken to prevent further loss and keep receipts for temporary repairs.
Agree communication routes between site managers, your broker, insurers and emergency services.
Review lessons learned and document corrective actions, as this can support insurer discussions at renewal.

How NFP Ireland can support your organisation

NFP Ireland works with waste and recycling businesses to reduce operational risk and improve insurance resilience.

We support practical controls that reduce fire, vehicle and contractor risks and help you present a strong risk management position to insurers.

Site specific risk assessments covering fire risk, batteries, workplace transport and contractor management
Insurance programme advice including property, business interruption, liability, motor fleet and environmental exposures
Renewal presentations that evidence controls and improvement plans
Claims readiness support and incident response checklists

For waste operators, the best risk stories are the ones you can evidence in layouts, logs and daily behaviours.

Ross Barron CIP
Director, Head of Placement

Want to see how we can help?

If you operate a waste or recycling site and want to review fire risk and workplace transport controls alongside your insurance programme, speak to NFP Ireland about an integrated risk review.

Learn more Request a quote

This insights article is not intended to address any specific situation or to provide legal, regulatory, financial, or other advice. While care has been taken in the production of this article, NFP does not warrant, represent or guarantee the accuracy, adequacy, completeness or fitness for any purpose of the article or any part of it and can accept no liability for any loss incurred in any way by any person who may rely on it. Any recipient shall be responsible for the use to which it puts this article. This article has been compiled using information available to us up to its date of publication.

NFP Ireland Consultants Ltd t/a NFP Ireland, NFP is authorised and regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland. Registered office: Second Floor, Block 4, Blackrock Business Park, Co. Dublin and its directors are Colm Power, Louise Gallagher, and Duncan Jarrett (British). Registered in Ireland No: 415534.

NFP contributors

Ross Barron CIP
Director, Head of Placement

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