Perspectives of Contractors and Insurance Companies on Construction Safety Practices: Case of a Middle Eastern Developing Country

The construction industry has long been a major contributor to worldwide occupational injuries and fatalities. The construction industry in Lebanon, a developing country, is no exception in contributing thousands of occupational injuries annually. Previous studies concluded that most Lebanese contractors do neither adopt proper safety practices nor properly implement safety manuals, especially with the absence of governmental enforcement and safety control. Moreover, insurance companies aggravate the existing problem through adopting shaky methods of evaluating premiums, which solely considers the contractor’s unreliable history of accidents. As such, a contractor safety index is proposed, which aims to assess a contractor’s safety status by evaluating the safety practices that the contractor implements. This index can be used by insurance companies when evaluating premiums can motivate contractors to enhance their safety practices in order to achieve a lower premium rate. The current paper presents and analyzes the results of a survey conducted with contractors and insurance companies to evaluate common construction safety practices that will be adopted within the proposed index. Results can help identify which practices would be more impactful on work progress and insurance premiums according to the perspectives of contractors and insurance companies respectively. Findings of the paper aim to improve the existing safety standards and promote a safety culture in the construction industry in Lebanon and other developing countries.