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Flooring RAMS Builder
Flooring risk assessment and method statement
Prepare RAMS for laying carpet tiles and planks, click laminate, sheet vinyl, dryback LVT and floating engineered wood, with the preparation and levelling that comes first.
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Pick everything this RAMS covers. The questions that follow are chosen from what you tick here.
Flooring RAMS template
A blank flooring RAMS to fill in: job details, method statement, risk assessment and briefing record.
Risk assessment and method statement
Flooring RAMS
- Company
- left blank to fill in
- Site and work area
- left blank to fill in
- Planned dates
- left blank to fill in
- In charge on site
- left blank to fill in
- Team
- left blank to fill in
Method statement
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
Risk assessment
| Hazard | Who might be harmed and how | Controls in place | Further action |
|---|---|---|---|
Flooring RAMS example
The same RAMS, filled in for one job.
Risk assessment and method statement
Flooring, Flat 4, 21 Wellington Road, Stockport
- Company
- Hollins & Reed Flooring Ltd
- Site and work area
- Flat 4, 21 Wellington Road, Stockport
- Planned dates
- 12 to 14 October 2026
- In charge on site
- Dan Hollins
- Team
- Two fitters: Dan Hollins leads and sets out; Priya Shah cuts and fits.
Method statement
- 1Set up the work areaConfirm the work area and scope before starting. Keep other people outside the active work area. Keep entrances and escape routes clear.
- 2Check and clean the subfloorCheck the accepted substrate is flat, clean, firm and dry. Remove dust and resolve loose or uneven areas before laying.
- 3Carry the materials safelyPlan the route, clear it, and carry long items upright with two people. Store materials close to the work so nobody carries further than they need to.
- 4Lay the specified underlayUnroll the named underlay and lay it close to the wall. Keep spare material and tools out of the walking route.
- 5Control the dust when cuttingCut with water suppression or on-tool extraction, never dry in the open. Wear an FFP3 mask when you cut and keep other people out of the dust.
- 6Limit noise and vibrationWear ear defenders when cutting and share the cutting between people. Take breaks from vibrating tools and keep them maintained.
- 7Keep movement gaps openUse spacers at walls, pipes, thresholds and fixed units. Do not screw, nail or glue through the floating floor.
- 8Finish and hand back the floorRemove spacers and fit trims to the wall or subfloor, not through the laminate. Tell the next trade how to clean and protect the finished floor.
- 9Clear and hand back the areaRemove tools, waste and unused materials. Check the area is clean and ready to use. Tell the person in charge when the work is complete.
Risk assessment
People entering the work area or tripping over materials
Workers, occupants and visitors
Mark or barrier the active work area. Store tools and materials away from access routes.
Creaking, movement or failure caused by dirt, damp or an unacceptable base
Floor layers and people using the area
Do not hide an unacceptable base with underlay. Stop if the substrate or product limits are not confirmed.
Back and shoulder injury from carrying heavy or long items
Everyone handling materials
Use a trolley or sack truck on the flat. Never carry up a ladder; hand items up or hoist them.
Loose or badly laid underlay can cause trips or an uneven floor.
Floor layers and people using the area
Use the named underlay. Keep joints and edges as the product instructions require.
Silica and board dust from power cutting damage the lungs
The person cutting and anyone downwind
Use the extraction or water kit that fits the tool. Cut in one place, away from other trades, and clear up with a vacuum not a brush.
Hearing damage and hand-arm vibration from power tools
The person cutting
Use sharp blades and discs, which cut faster with less vibration. Warn people nearby before you start cutting.
Buckling or open joints when the floor cannot expand and contract
Floor layers and people using the building
Keep the specified gap at every fixed interface. Resolve a stair or structural detail outside this operation before continuing.
Damage, scratches or loss of movement when trims are fixed to the floating floor
Floor layers, cleaners and other trades
Keep furniture and loads off until the instructions allow them. Leave the route clear of packs, tools and offcuts.
Debris, tools or unfinished work left in the area
Workers, occupants and visitors
Remove waste by the agreed route. Record and protect any unfinished work.
What a Flooring RAMS covers
Floor preparation and levelling, then carpet tiles, click laminate, sheet vinyl, dryback LVT or floating engineered wood. Not covered: taking up old floor coverings.
- Carpet tiles/planks
- Click laminate
- Fully adhered sheet vinyl
- Dryback LVT
- Floating engineered wood
- Controlled preparation
- Hand-mixed levelling compound
Suggested steps and hazards for Flooring
Suggested for click laminate before any questions are answered.
Check and clean the subfloor
- Check the accepted substrate is flat, clean, firm and dry.
- Remove dust and resolve loose or uneven areas before laying.
Hazard
Creaking, movement or failure caused by dirt, damp or an unacceptable base
Who might be harmed and how
Floor layers and people using the area
Controls in place
- Do not hide an unacceptable base with underlay.
- Stop if the substrate or product limits are not confirmed.
A clean, firm and dry base is needed before a floating laminate floor can work.
Laying laminate flooring Lay the specified underlay
- Unroll the named underlay and lay it close to the wall.
- Keep spare material and tools out of the walking route.
Hazard
Loose or badly laid underlay can cause trips or an uneven floor.
Who might be harmed and how
Floor layers and people using the area
Controls in place
- Use the named underlay.
- Keep joints and edges as the product instructions require.
The specified underlay supports the floating system and keeps the work area usable.
Keep movement gaps open
- Use spacers at walls, pipes, thresholds and fixed units.
- Do not screw, nail or glue through the floating floor.
Hazard
Buckling or open joints when the floor cannot expand and contract
Who might be harmed and how
Floor layers and people using the building
Controls in place
- Keep the specified gap at every fixed interface.
- Resolve a stair or structural detail outside this operation before continuing.
Movement gaps let the floating floor respond without buckling or opening joints.
Quick-Step laminate installation instructions
What the builder asks about Flooring
Your answers decide which steps, hazards and controls it suggests.
The job
- Which laminate and underlay are specified?
- Which sheet, adhesive and seam system is specified?
- Which adhesive and LVT system are you using?
- What are you removing or correcting?
- Which compound and primer are on the job?
- Which wood product and click system are you fitting?
Where
- What must the floating floor fit around?
- How will the roll be moved and laid out?
- What will affect the adhesive here?
- What is under the wood floor?
- Do any floor panels need to stay removable?
- Has the material been identified before you disturb it?
- What will control the work sequence?
- What pipes or cables run behind, under or through the floor or wall?
What your Flooring RAMS includes
Method statement
The work in order, step by step.
Risk assessment
Each hazard, who could be harmed, the controls in place and any further action.
The method statement and risk assessment in one A4 PDF.
What the law asks for
What a RAMS is
A risk assessment and method statement. The risk assessment records what could cause harm on the job, who could be harmed and how, and the controls that keep the risk down. The method statement sets out how the work will be done, step by step, in the order it happens.
A client or main contractor will usually ask for one before you start. RAMS is a site term, not a legal one: the law asks for the risk assessment and for the work to be planned, and a method statement is the usual way to show that plan for one job.
What the law asks for
- Employers, and self-employed people doing construction work, must make a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risks to their own people and to anyone else affected by the work (Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, regulation 3).
- An employer with five or more employees must record the significant findings. The assessment must be reviewed if there is reason to think it is no longer valid, or the work has changed significantly.
- Every contractor must plan, manage and monitor its work so that, so far as is reasonably practicable, it is done without risks to health and safety, and must give its workers the information and instructions they need, including the hazards the risk assessment found (Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015, regulation 15).
HSE guidance: the steps to manage risk and what contractors must do under CDM. This is the law in Great Britain; Northern Ireland has its own equivalent regulations.
What the builder does
You choose the work and answer questions about how the job will be done, such as what you will stand on and what else is going on nearby. Your answers decide which steps, hazards and controls it suggests.
Many suggestions link to the HSE guidance they draw on. Your work is kept in this browser, and the PDF is made on your device.
Separate documents
A COSHH assessment, lifting plan, permit to work, asbestos survey and the principal contractor’s construction phase plan are separate from the RAMS.