Farm Vehicles
Farm vehicles — side-by-side vehicles, utes, cars, trucks, quad bikes and motorbikes — are among the leading causes of death and serious injury on Australian farms. These incidents affect employees, family and children, often during everyday tasks, and everyone is at risk: operating a vehicle, riding as a passenger, or simply nearby.
Most serious incidents are rollovers, collisions or run-overs — often linked to not wearing seatbelts, riding in trays, or a lack of proper training.
Manage the risk
- wear seatbelts, and fit rollover protection — under work health and safety regulations, most tractors must have rollover protection,
- keep children away from work and vehicle areas,
- induct and train every operator, and match the vehicle to the task and the terrain,
- carry out pre-start checks and keep vehicles maintained.
Manage fatigue
Fatigue increases the risk of vehicle incidents, especially during long hours and peak seasons. The business has a legal duty to manage fatigue and keep everyone safe around vehicles — reasonable rosters and breaks help (see The People Snapshot).
The Farm Safety Manual – Farm Vehicles chapter and the 'Step by step – setting up vehicle safety' guide support this page.
Common questions
Why are farm vehicles so dangerous?
They cause a large share of on-farm deaths and serious injuries — mostly through rollovers, collisions and run-overs, often when seatbelts aren't worn or operators aren't trained.
Do tractors need rollover protection?
Under work health and safety regulations, most tractors must have rollover protection fitted, and seatbelts should be worn.
How can farm vehicle risk be reduced?
Seatbelts, rollover protection, keeping children away from work areas, inducting and training operators, matching the vehicle to the task, and pre-start checks and maintenance.