Otago DIYers are among the most injured people in New Zealand - and more concerningly, one of the most common injuries is people getting foreign bodies stuck in their ‘‘eyes or orifices’’.
Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) injury prevention leader James Whitaker said autumn served up some of the best weather of the year, so it was a great chance to nail a few jobs around the house before winter set in.
‘‘If you remember to take a moment to assess risks before starting, you can stay injury-free and get the job done.’’
In 2024, the top regions for DIY injuries were Auckland (5711), Waikato (2218), Canterbury (2184), Bay of Plenty (1644), Wellington (1428), Northland (1294) and Otago (964).
To help people in these regions recover, it cost $12million in the Auckland region, $4.7m in the Waikato, $5.2m in Canterbury, $3.7m in the Bay of Plenty, $2.9m in Wellington, $2.8m in Northland and $2.5m in Otago.
Most of the injuries were soft-tissue injuries (11,567), followed by lacerations/punctures/sting injuries (4447), foreign bodies in orifice/eye (1281) and fractures/dislocations (677).
The three most prevalent prior activities to sustaining a DIY injury last year were tool-related (not machine) injuries (4221), lifting/lowering/loading/unloading (3921) and operating machinery (1266).
Mr Whitaker said men were three times more likely to hurt themselves in a DIY accident than women, there having been 14,769 accepted claims by men last year, compared with 4693 by women.
Nationwide, the ACC accepted 19,500 DIY injury claims, which cost $41m to help people recover - the highest cost over the past five years, Mr Whitaker said.
‘‘These injuries don’t just affect the injured person. There are flow-on effects for their family, friends and workmates.
‘‘You might not be able to be as involved with your kids or grandchildren, and your workmates may need to take on some of the tasks you otherwise might’ve done.’’
He said ACC data showed DIY activities had a relatively high risk of injury, but most injuries were predictable and therefore preventable.
‘‘Our top DIY tip is to slow down.
‘‘Many injuries in the home happen simply because people are rushing.
‘‘These can be prevented by simply slowing down and stopping to assess the risks.’’
