There is no safe height to ignore — why the “3-metre rule” is a myth
There is no height below which you can ignore a fall risk. The old “3-metre rule” is a myth under current law — WorkSafe data shows more than half of injury falls are from under 3 metres. Under the HSWA you must manage any risk of a fall that could injure someone, so far as is reasonably practicable, using the hierarchy of controls.
Many people still believe you only need fall protection above 3 metres. That belief is wrong, and it gets people hurt.
The “three-metre rule” comes from an old regulation under previous legislation, and it has been widely misunderstood to mean no controls are needed below 3 metres. WorkSafe is explicit that this is a mistaken belief — and the data backs it up: more than half of the falls it investigates are from less than 3 metres, most commonly from ladders and roofs on residential sites. Under the current HSWA, the test is not a magic number; it is whether a fall could harm someone.
Under the HSWA you must manage the risk of any fall that could cause injury, so far as is reasonably practicable.
That means you assess where people could fall and be hurt — off an edge, through a fragile surface, into a hole, or down an incline — and you control it, regardless of the exact height. A fall of 1.5 metres onto concrete or protruding steel can be just as serious as a higher fall onto soft ground. The duty is risk-based, so the question is always “could someone be injured?”, not “is it over a set height?”.
Work down from removing the risk entirely to, as a last resort, equipment that relies on the individual.
| Approach | Examples |
|---|---|
| 1. Eliminate | Do the work at ground level — prefabricate on the ground, use extendable tools, design out the need to go up. |
| 2. Prevent the fall (collective) | Edge protection, guardrails, scaffolds, total work platforms, mobile elevating work platforms — controls that protect everyone at once. |
| 3. Minimise the fall (individual) | Fall-arrest harness systems, safety nets — a lesser form of protection, used only when collective controls aren't practicable. |
| 4. Ladders | Suitable only for low-risk, short-duration tasks, with three points of contact. |
WorkSafe's preferred approach is collective controls that isolate multiple workers from the fall risk. Harnesses and platforms are a lesser form of protection and should only be used where group controls are not practicable.
Two practical rules cause most of the confusion — and they are different things.
Scaffolds should comply with the recognised New Zealand best-practice guidelines, and be erected, altered and dismantled by trained, experienced people. Where a person or object could fall more than 5 metres — and for all suspended scaffolds — the work must be done by, or under the direct supervision of, a holder of the relevant Certificate of Competence (a “scaffolding ticket”). Ladders are for low-risk, short-duration tasks only; keep three points of contact, don't overreach, and don't use them as a default just because they're handy.
If you use a harness or fall-arrest system, you must also plan how to rescue someone who has fallen and is suspended.
A person hanging in a harness can suffer serious harm quickly, so “catch the fall” is only half the plan — you need a workable, practised way to get them down fast. This is exactly the kind of detail that belongs in your task analysis for the job. See our guide to SSSPs and SWMS for documenting it.
Assess fall risks and document height tasks properly. Book a demo and we'll show you how it works — free 30-day trial included.
No. There is no height below which you can ignore a fall risk. The old “3-metre rule” is a myth under current law. Under the HSWA you must manage any risk of a fall that could injure someone, regardless of height — and WorkSafe data shows more than half of injury falls are from under 3 metres.
Work down the hierarchy: first try to eliminate the need to work at height, then prevent falls with collective controls like edge protection and scaffolds, then use individual controls such as harnesses, and use ladders only for low-risk, short tasks. Collective controls that protect everyone are preferred over harnesses.
Where a person or object could fall more than 5 metres, and for all suspended scaffolds, the scaffolding must be erected, altered or dismantled by or under the direct supervision of a holder of the relevant Certificate of Competence. All scaffolds should be built by trained, experienced people to the recognised guidelines.
Yes, but only for low-risk, short-duration tasks. Maintain three points of contact, don't overreach, and don't default to a ladder when a safer platform is practicable. For anything more than brief, low-risk work, a platform or scaffold is usually the safer choice.
Yes. If you rely on a harness or fall-arrest system, you must plan how to rescue someone who falls and is left suspended, because suspension can cause serious harm quickly. Catching the fall is only half the job; getting the person down fast is the other half.
