What are the main vibration risks?

The two main ways you can be exposed to vibration risks are:

• Hand-transmitted vibration, also known as hand-arm vibration (HAV), from operating hand-held power tools or holding vibrating materials. This is vibration which reaches your hand when you work with hand-held power tools or hand-guided machinery, or when you are holding materials that vibrate as they are being machined.
• Whole-body vibration (WBV) transmitted through the seat of industrial vehicles such as lorries, forklift trucks and tractors, into the driver's body. Vibrations can also pass from the platform of a vehicle or machine into the operator's body through the feet.