Test your knowledge for the NEBOSH IGC exam — Elements 1 to 5
Prepare for the IG1 unit of the NEBOSH IGC exam (Management of Health and Safety). The questions and answers are in English, using the exact terminology you'll meet on the exam — ideal for international HSE professionals and expats.
NEBOSH IG1 (Management of Health and Safety) is the theory part of the NEBOSH International General Certificate. It is an open-book assessment in which you answer one long scenario-based question on workplace health & safety management. The assessment runs over 24 hours (online open-book) and covers 5 elements:
Below you'll find 4 practice questions per element — 20 in total. Click a question to see the answer and explanation.
Answer: The three reasons are: moral (people have the right to a safe workplace), legal (statutory duties under health & safety law, EU directives, and national law), and financial (cost of accidents, insurance premiums, lost production, reputational damage).
Exam tip: Remember "MLF" — Moral, Legal, Financial. In an exam scenario you should mention all three for full marks.
Answer: A hazard is anything with the potential to cause harm or injury (e.g. a slippery floor, chemicals, working at height). A risk is the combination of the likelihood that the hazard actually causes harm and the severity of that potential harm.
Exam tip: Risk = Likelihood × Severity. This is one of the most frequently tested concepts in the IG1 exam.
Answer: The employer must, "so far as is reasonably practicable", provide: (1) a safe working environment, (2) safe work equipment and machinery, (3) adequate training and supervision, (4) safe access and egress, (5) the health and welfare of workers, (6) consultation with workers on health & safety matters.
Exam tip: "Reasonably practicable" means the employer must weigh the risk against the cost and effort of preventing it.
Answer: Direct costs: medical care, sick pay, replacement staff, repairing damage, fines. Indirect costs: lost production, delays, investigation time, lower morale, higher staff turnover, reputational damage, higher insurance premiums, and possible prosecution of directors/managers.
Exam tip: Indirect costs are often 4–10× higher than direct costs. Important to mention for full marks.
Answer: Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA): Plan (policy and planning), Do (implementation and operation), Check (measuring and monitoring), Act (review and improve). This follows the structure of ISO 45001.
Exam tip: Describe what happens in each phase, not just the names.
Answer: Three parts: (1) Statement of intent (signed by senior management), (2) Organisation (who is responsible for what), (3) Arrangements (how you tackle specific risks with control measures, procedures, training, etc.).
Exam tip: Senior management must sign the policy and review it regularly — at least annually or after significant changes.
Answer: Communication is one-way (giving information to workers). Consultation is two-way (also listening to workers and taking their input into decisions). Both are legal requirements.
Exam tip: Trade unions and safety representatives are important stakeholders in consultation.
Answer: Factors: leadership commitment, communication, worker involvement, training and competence, supervision, blame culture versus just culture, management example, workload and deadlines, availability of resources, reward/punishment of safe behaviour. Regular toolbox talks (short on-the-job safety briefings) often strengthen a positive safety culture.
Exam tip: "Tone at the top" — managers and directors set the culture through their behaviour.
Answer: (1) Identify hazards, (2) Decide who might be harmed and how, (3) Evaluate the risks and set suitable control measures, (4) Record and implement the controls, (5) Review and update regularly.
Exam tip: This is from the UK HSE "Five steps to risk assessment" — almost certainly exam material.
Answer: Under the hierarchy of control you work from the most robust to the least robust controls: Elimination (remove the hazard entirely), Substitution (replace with a less hazardous option), Engineering controls (e.g. isolation, guarding), Administrative controls (including safe systems of work and supervision). Only then comes PPE (personal protective equipment): this is almost always last — not the first solution.
Exam tip: PPE is always the LAST resort, never the first. An almost-guaranteed exam question.
Answer: Vulnerable workers: young workers (under 18), pregnant women, older workers, disabled workers, workers with limited language skills, lone workers, new/inexperienced workers, and visitors/contractors unfamiliar with the workplace.
Exam tip: "Vulnerable groups" is a typical scenario question on IG1.
Answer: A permit to work is a formal written authorisation for high-risk work within a safe system of work. Use it for hot work (welding, grinding), confined space entry, working at height, work on electrical installations, and isolation of energy sources (LOTO). All controls are recorded and issued before work starts; afterwards the permit is properly closed.
Exam tip: Every permit to work must be closed and cancelled after the work — a detail candidates often forget.
Answer: Active (proactive) monitoring: measuring before something goes wrong — inspections, audits and checks that your controls still work. Reactive monitoring: measuring after incidents — accident investigation, near miss reporting, sick leave statistics, claims.
Exam tip: Both are needed. Active is better (preventive); reactive still gives insight into what goes wrong.
Answer: Near misses — situations where injury or damage was narrowly avoided — are the visible part of a larger trend (the "iceberg"): for every serious injury there are estimated to be many more minor incidents and near misses (Heinrich). By systematically reporting and investigating near misses, you improve controls before a major accident occurs. It also reveals weaknesses in your safety culture.
Exam tip: Workers must be able to report incidents without fear of punishment — a "no-blame culture".
Answer: (1) Gather information (interviews, photos, physical evidence, documents), (2) Analyse information (immediate causes, underlying causes, root causes), (3) Identify control measures (which new or stronger controls are needed?), (4) Plan remedial actions (who does what and when).
Exam tip: Distinguish between the immediate cause (what happened directly) and the root cause (why it happened — often a management failure).
Answer: Leading indicators (proactive): % training complete, number of inspections carried out, near miss reports, audit scores. Lagging indicators (reactive): LTIFR (Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate), TRIFR (Total Recordable Injury Frequency Rate), sick leave hours, claims.
Exam tip: Good organisations focus more on leading than lagging indicators.
Answer: Physical: noise, vibration, radiation, temperature extremes. Chemical: dust, fumes, solvents. Biological: bacteria, viruses, fungi (legionella, hepatitis). Ergonomic: manual handling, repetitive movements, awkward postures. Psychosocial: stress, bullying, harassment, work-life balance.
Exam tip: Give examples from each category for full marks.
Answer: A stress management approach: (1) Identify stressors (workload, deadlines, role conflict, lack of control), (2) Assess who is at risk via surveys/sick leave data, (3) Control via realistic workload, training, support systems, EAP (Employee Assistance Programme), (4) Monitor sick leave and turnover trends.
Exam tip: HSE Management Standards for stress: Demands, Control, Support, Relationships, Role, Change.
Answer: Typical risks: musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), back injuries, hernias, repetitive strain. First apply the TILE model in your assessment: Task (can this task be done differently?), Individual (the worker's capability), Load (weight/shape/grip), Environment (floor, space, temperature). Then apply the hierarchy of control: where possible eliminate lifting and use engineering controls (mechanical aids), then suitable administrative controls; PPE only where needed.
Exam tip: Remember the TILE acronym — often a direct exam question.
Answer: Welfare = basic facilities: clean toilets, drinking water, washing/eating areas, rest areas, first-aid facilities, adequate heating/ventilation/lighting. Required under the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 in the UK (and equivalent national regulations elsewhere).
Exam tip: Welfare is not a "luxury" but a legal requirement. Poor welfare facilities lead to morale issues and absence.
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