Risk assessment: definition and purpose explained simply

Definition: What is a risk assessment?

The risk assessment is the central instrument of occupational health and safety in the workplace. The Occupational Health and Safety Act (ArbSchG) describes it in Section 5 (1) ArbSchG: The employer must determine, by assessing the hazards associated with their work for the employees, which occupational health and safety measures are necessary. In short, the risk assessment is therefore the systematic identification and assessment of hazards with the aim of deriving the appropriate protective measures.

This does not mean that every single workplace is assessed twice: Where working conditions are similar, the assessment of one workplace or one activity is sufficient (Section 5 (2) ArbSchG).

Purpose: Why it is the core of occupational health and safety

The purpose of the risk assessment is to move occupational health and safety from chance to system. The Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (BAuA) describes it as a systematic process: identifying hazards, assessing them, determining measures, and reviewing their effectiveness. These steps are also required by Section 6 ArbSchG, which calls for traceable documentation of the result, the measures, and their review. In parallel, Section 3 DGUV Regulation 1 obliges every employer, as a member of the statutory accident insurance, to assess working conditions and document this assessment – identical in content to Sections 5 and 6 ArbSchG.

This makes the risk assessment the basis of almost all further occupational health and safety activities – from technical protective measures to the topics of the annual instruction.

Because working conditions in a company change, the risk assessment is designed as an ongoing process and not as a one-off document: If the assessment shows that the measures taken are not sufficient, further measures are determined and checked again for their effectiveness. In this way, it remains a living management tool.

Which hazards are assessed

Section 5 (3) ArbSchG lists examples of what hazards can arise from. These include, among others:

• the design and furnishing of the workplace and the work station;
• physical, chemical, and biological effects;
• the design, selection, and use of work equipment;
• the design of work and production processes, work sequences, and working time;
• insufficient qualification and instruction of employees;
• mental strain at work.

The list is not exhaustive. Important: Mental strain has also been an explicit part of the assessment since 2013 – occupational health and safety therefore means both physical and mental health.

Classification within occupational health and safety

The risk assessment is the methodological starting point of occupational health and safety in the workplace: The specific protective measures and the content of the instruction are derived from its results. It describes what needs to be done – not who is responsible in detail or at what intervals documentation takes place; those are separate topics. Further articles on this topic are collected in the Occupational Safety & Fire Protection topic hub.

What is the difference between a risk assessment and instruction?

The risk assessment is the upstream analysis step: It systematically identifies and assesses which hazards exist at a workplace and which protective measures follow from them. Instruction is the practical consequence of this – it teaches employees the rules of conduct and protection derived from the risk assessment. Without an up-to-date risk assessment, instruction lacks its substantive basis.

Who has to carry out a risk assessment?

Under Section 5 ArbSchG, every employer is obliged to carry out a risk assessment, regardless of company size or industry – from the very first employee. The employer can delegate the practical implementation to competent persons such as occupational safety specialists or managers; however, the legal responsibility for a complete, up-to-date risk assessment always remains with the employer.

How often must a risk assessment be updated?

The Occupational Health and Safety Act does not specify a fixed deadline. According to Section 3 (2) DGUV Regulation 1, however, the risk assessment must be reviewed as soon as working conditions change – for example due to new work equipment, changed processes, new regulations, or after an accident. In the absence of such occasions, regular checks are advisable, as it is designed as an ongoing process.

• ArbSchG Section 5 – Assessment of working conditions – as of 21 Jan 2026
• ArbSchG Section 6 – Documentation – as of 21 Jan 2026
• Section 3 DGUV Regulation 1 – Assessment of working conditions, documentation, duties to provide information (BGHM) – as of 21 Jan 2026
• Inclusion of mental strain in Section 5 (3) no. 6 ArbSchG by the BUK-Neuorganisationsgesetz of 19 Oct 2013 (in force since 25 Oct 2013) – as of 21 Jan 2026
• BAuA – Risk assessment handbook, basics and process steps – as of 21 Jan 2026

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