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This page explains what standards bodies, federations and makers publish. It is not a substitute for instruction from a qualified instructor or guide, and it does not replace medical advice.
This section is a reference to what the bodies that study climbing accidents and injuries have published. It is not a safety course. Belaying, lowering, rappelling, anchors, knots, protection, rescue and first aid are taught in person by a qualified instructor or guide, and nothing on these pages replaces that. The UIAA, in a 2018 extract from its Alpine Skills Summer Handbook, says anyone using technical climbing gear needs to read its instructions, get specific training, understand its limits and accept the risks. The BMC's Participation Statement says climbing carries a risk of personal injury or death, and the ABC's Code of Practice says the same of roped climbing, bouldering and auto-belay use.
How these pages are written
- Every figure has an owner and a year. A statistic is given with the report or study it comes from, the period it covers and its authors. Where a body gives no date, the page says so.
- Causes are each body's own finding. The American Alpine Club, the Alpine Club of Canada, the BMC, the Swiss Alpine Club, Austria's Board for Alpine Safety, the German Alpine Club and the researchers all count different people in different categories. Where they rank causes differently, each ranking is shown and none is merged.
- Injuries and illnesses are named, not treated. Descriptions come from the medical studies and the UIAA Medical Commission. Each one needs medical care, and the pages say so.
- Contradictions are shown. Where a source disagrees with another, or with itself, both versions are given.
- Gaps are admitted. Where a report could not be read or a figure could not be confirmed, the page says so rather than filling the gap.
What is in this section
Start with what the accident data shows, which explains who collects climbing accident data in North America, the UK and the Alps, and sets each body's ranking of causes side by side. Roped climbing incidents covers the American Alpine Club's recent trends, a 30-year analysis by discipline, the BMC's near-miss reports, and what the UIAA and makers have published on gear failure and recalls.
Two pages look indoors. Gym safety sets out the published gym injury study, the German and Austrian gym accident statistics, and what the UK and US wall associations publish for operators. Auto-belays reports what the ABC and the Climbing Wall Association have said about self-belay devices.
Injuries names overuse, finger pulley and fall injuries as the medical studies do. Rockfall, weather and avalanches gathers what land managers, geologists and forecasters publish about objective hazards. Helmets and risk sets out each body's position on helmets, including the BMC's framing of it as a personal choice, and what the helmet standards test.
The last two pages cover learning and the high mountains. Learning from qualified instruction gathers what federations, guide associations, wall associations and makers say about instruction, and how instructor awards are accredited. Altitude illness names the illnesses the UIAA Medical Commission describes and lists its other papers.
Related reading
For what each piece of gear is and the standard it is tested to, see the equipment section, including standards and markings and recalls. For how instructor and guide awards work, see learning and guide certification. Terms used across the site are explained in the glossary.