Forklift Accident Statistics: Deaths, Injuries and Causes

Forklift accidents are rare compared with all workplace incidents, but they are disproportionately serious. The figures below come only from government safety agencies (BLS, NIOSH, OSHA in the United States and HSE in Great Britain). Each table states the data year and links to its source, so you can quote the number with its context.

How many workers die in forklift accidents each year?

In the United States, government data put forklift-related deaths at roughly 70–100 a year. NIOSH's long-standing estimate is "nearly 100 workers killed and another 20,000 seriously injured" each year, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics recorded 630 deaths involving powered industrial trucks between 2011 and 2019.

The BLS changed its injury classification system (OIICS) starting with 2023 data, so newer counts should not be compared one-to-one with the older series. For context, BLS counted 5,283 fatal work injuries across all causes in 2023, down from 5,486 in 2022, and transportation and material moving occupations, where most forklift operators are classified, had the most deaths of any occupational group, at 1,495.

What are the most common types of fatal forklift accidents?

Overturns and pedestrians struck by a forklift are the two leading fatal accident types. In NIOSH's analysis of 1,021 forklift deaths between 1980 and 1994, these two categories alone account for 42% of victims.

The "struck by" share is the one most directly addressed by pedestrian detection. A forklift collision avoidance system such as ISEE-CAM watches the zone around the truck and warns the driver and the pedestrian before the paths cross. Overturns, by contrast, are mostly prevented by training, load handling and seat belt use.

Is forklift safety a common OSHA violation?

Yes. The OSHA standard for powered industrial trucks, 29 CFR 1910.178, appears on OSHA's list of the ten most frequently cited standards every year.

The standard covers operator training, truck examination before use and safe operation. That is why camera systems are positioned as an additional layer on top of training and inspection, not as a substitute for them.

How often are forklifts involved in workplace transport accidents in the UK?

In Great Britain, lift trucks are involved in about a quarter of all workplace transport accidents, according to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Being struck by a moving vehicle is one of the most common causes of fatal work injuries overall.

The HSE figures cover all workplace vehicles, not only forklifts, but they show the same pattern as the US data: people on foot near moving vehicles are the group most at risk. For operating rules rather than statistics, HSE's Approved Code of Practice L117, Rider-operated lift trucks, covers operator training and safe use in Great Britain (HSE L117).

What do these statistics mean for forklift safety programs?

The numbers point to two priorities: keeping pedestrians and forklifts apart, and detecting the moments when they are not apart. Physical separation, marked walkways, speed limits and operator training come first. Detection technology then covers what layout and training cannot, such as blind corners, racking ends and dock doors.

ISEE Vision's forklift safety guide covers the operational measures in detail, and the UWB vs AI camera comparison explains the trade-offs between tag-based and camera-based proximity detection. For blind corners and rack ends, see the blind spot warning mode, and for wiring alarms or slowdowns into site controls, see ISEE-CAM PLC integration.

How we compiled these figures

We only included figures that we could verify in the original publication from a government agency, and we list each figure with the year it describes. Secondary compilations and vendor statistics were excluded. Where an agency's figure is an estimate or a multi-year average, the table says so. We will update this page when BLS, OSHA or HSE publish new data.