Is Your Safety Signage Making Things Worse?

Have you ever walked into a workplace plastered with safety signs, where every wall, entry point, and corridor is dotted with instructions, warnings, and prohibition notices? While the intention may be good, the result can be the opposite of what’s intended. Safety signage plays a critical role in communicating hazards and guiding behaviour, but when it is misused through over-signposting, unclear symbols, or outdated messages, it can lead to confusion, complacency, or even increased risk.

In this article, we’ll explore how poorly managed signage can undermine workplace safety, what the law requires, and how employers can implement best practices to ensure signage is genuinely effective.

What the Law Requires

In the UK, the Health and Safety (Safety Signs and Signals) Regulations 1996(1) require employers to use safety signage where significant residual risks remain after all other reasonable control measures have been implemented. This means signage should serve as a final line of defence, not the first.

According to the regulations, signs must be clear and easily understood by all employees, including those with limited literacy or who are non-native English speakers. They must be legible and visible, placed appropriately with good lighting and contrast. To ensure consistency and clarity, all safety signs should also conform to recognised symbols defined by BS EN ISO 7010, which is the British and European standard for safety signage. (1)

Overuse or poor placement of signs can lead to sign blindness. This is a cognitive phenomenon where individuals become so accustomed to seeing safety signs that they eventually stop noticing them altogether. As a result, crucial warnings may be missed at the moment they are most needed. (2) (3)

The Problem with Over-Signposting

A growing issue in many workplaces is the proliferation of safety signs. Driven by a culture of risk aversion and the fear of litigation, some organisations display signs for every imaginable hazard, no matter how minor.

This excessive use creates visual clutter, overwhelming employees with too much information. Rather than heightening awareness, it can cause people to become desensitised. Important messages may be lost in the noise of less meaningful or repetitive warnings.

When signs are used to flag trivial or overly obvious risks, such as wet floor signs left out long after the floor has dried, the credibility of the entire system suffers. Employees begin to disregard signage altogether, assuming the warnings are exaggerated or irrelevant. (4).

Confusing Icons and Outdated Messages

Consistency in safety communication is vital. When non-standard symbols or outdated designs are used, the risk of misinterpretation increases significantly. For example, using old icons or homemade signage that does not align with BS EN ISO 7010 can cause confusion, especially in diverse teams or workplaces with international employees.

The Health and Safety Executive advises that all safety signs should use standardised symbols to ensure a universal understanding. This advice is especially important in high-risk environments such as construction sites, factories, and distribution centres where clear, immediate recognition is crucial. Employers should regularly review all signage to make sure the images and instructions are accurate, current, and legally compliant.

Real-World Implications: Lessons from Industry

Recognising the limitations of traditional signage, some automotive manufacturers in the UK are introducing projected safety signs to address the issue of sign blindness. Unlike static signs, which may fade, become damaged, or go unnoticed, projected signs use vivid lighting to display important safety information directly onto walls or floors. These signs are dynamic, highly visible, and particularly effective in noisy or high-traffic areas where capturing attention is difficult.

Companies such as Projected Image have had success implementing this technology in large production facilities. Projected signs are not subject to physical wear and can be quickly updated when processes or layouts change. While they come at a higher cost compared to conventional signage, the increased visibility and reduced risk of incidents can make them a worthwhile investment in environments with complex operations or moving machinery. (5)

Compliance and Legal Risk

Safety signage does more than provide information. It is also a legal requirement. If an incident occurs and it is determined that signage was misleading, poorly placed, or confusing, employers may face legal consequences under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. (6)

The Health and Safety Executive has the power to issue improvement or prohibition notices where signage is found to be non-compliant or where it contributes to unsafe conditions. Failure to follow safety signage regulations, or the use of contradictory or ambiguous messages, may be considered evidence of a lack of due diligence. This underlines the importance of routinely reviewing and maintaining all workplace signs.

Engaging Employees in Signage Strategy

One often-overlooked aspect of effective signage is employee engagement. Even a well-designed sign is ineffective if workers do not understand its meaning or do not see its relevance to their tasks.

Employers should make signage awareness a key part of induction training for all new staff. Periodic refresher training should also be offered, particularly when new signs are installed or when roles change. Feedback from employees is valuable and should be encouraged. They are often best placed to identify signs that are helpful, those that are routinely ignored, or those that create confusion.

Involving staff in signage audits, either through health and safety committees or informal workplace discussions, can lead to more practical and meaningful signage solutions.

Best Practices for Safety Signage

To maximise the effectiveness of safety signage, employers should conduct regular audits of their premises to check that all signs are still necessary, relevant, and in good condition. Damaged or obsolete signs should be removed promptly. Signs should use standardised symbols that comply with BS EN ISO 7010 to maintain consistency and reduce the chance of misinterpretation.

It is important to avoid overcrowding any one area with too many signs. An excess of messages can lead to information overload, where none of the signs are properly registered. Employers should ensure that signage is visible and understandable to everyone, including those with visual impairments or limited reading skills.

Where suitable, employers might consider using emerging technologies such as digital or projected signage in areas where traditional signs have failed to attract attention. Most importantly, signage must be part of a broader safety system, complementing physical controls, training, and supervision rather than replacing them.

Conclusion

Safety signs are a vital part of any health and safety system, but they are only effective when used with care and intention. Over-signposting, inconsistent symbols, and outdated messages can create confusion and reduce the impact of important warnings.

To create safer workplaces, employers must prioritise clarity over quantity. This means regularly reviewing signage for effectiveness, using standard symbols, limiting clutter, and involving employees in the process. By doing so, organisations can ensure that every sign has purpose, is respected, and genuinely contributes to a safer environment.

Don’t let your signage become invisible wallpaper. Make every sign count.