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Chainsaw kickback and chain brakes: what OSHA, HSE, CCOHS and WorkSafeBC say

Kickback is the injury cause that regulators single out on a chainsaw. This page sets out how regulators define it, what OSHA and WorkSafeBC require of the saw itself, the brake test figures CCOHS reports, and the standards that cover chain brakes.

Checked against the sources at the bottom of this page on October 9, 2026. Rules, fees and pay change: the source has the last word.

This page reports what the named codes, regulators and makers say. It is not training and does not teach the work. This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here.

The courses that teach saw work are covered in the guides on chainsaw tickets and certifications by country. The clothing side is in chainsaw protection.

How the sources define kickback

  • HSE, in its leaflet Chainsaws at work (INDG317), defines kickback as the sudden uncontrolled upward and backward movement of the chain and guide bar towards the operator, which can happen when the chain at the nose of the bar hits an object. It says kickback is responsible for a significant proportion of chainsaw injuries, many to the face and upper body where protection is difficult.
  • CCOHS, the Canadian centre for occupational health and safety, quotes the definition in CSA Z62.3-11 (R2021). The standard splits kickback into two kinds: rotational kickback, when the chain near the top of the bar tip touches an object such as a log or branch, and pinch kickback, when wood closes in and pinches the chain in the cut.
  • WorkSafe Western Australia calls kickback the major injury risk and describes it as the violent reaction when the upper quadrant of the bar tip meets resistance.

All three say the safety devices reduce the effect and none says they remove it. HSE says a properly maintained chain brake and low-kickback chain (safety chain) reduce the effect but cannot entirely prevent it. CCOHS says kickback-reducing devices reduce but do not prevent kickback. WorkSafe Western Australia says even the chain brake and inertia brake cannot be guaranteed to prevent a kickback injury, which can happen faster than human reflexes.

What the sources list about use

SourcePoints it lists
HSE, INDG317Operators avoid kickback by not letting the nose of the bar touch an obstruction such as a branch, log or stump, not over-reaching, keeping the saw below chest height, keeping the left thumb around the back of the front handle, and using the chain speed that suits the material
CCOHS, kickback fact sheet (revised August 22, 2023)Cutting one piece at a time, running at full power, a sharpened chain, chain and bar matched on pitch and gauge, depth gauges at the maker's settings, correct chain tension, both hands on the saw, firm footing, and knowing where the bar tip is. It also says to stand to the side of the cutting path and not behind the saw, and not to cut in the kickback zone or above shoulder height. It mentions a safety tip that covers the nose of the bar, to be removed for bore cuts or for wood thicker than the bar is long
WorkSafe Western Australia (updated April 1, 2025)Awareness of the upper quadrant of the bar tip, clearing brush and obstructions before a cut, and avoiding cuts that jam the saw. It says a blunt chain needs more effort and increases fatigue, which can lead to kickback accidents. It also says to run the motor at full revs while cutting and to keep the left thumb under the front handle, and says the swivel of the wrist in a kickback can activate the chain brake

What the rules require of the saw

RuleWhat it says
OSHA, 29 CFR 1910.266(e)(2)(i) and (ii)A saw placed in initial service after the paragraph's effective date has a chain brake and otherwise meets ANSI B175.1-1991. A saw in service before that date has a protective device that minimizes kickback, and no kickback device is removed or disabled. A petrol saw has a continuous pressure throttle control that stops the chain when pressure on the throttle is released
British Columbia, OHS Regulation sections 12.72 and 12.73A chain saw meets CSA Standard Z62.1-95 and has a chain brake that activates automatically upon kickback regardless of the position of the power head or operator's hands. A saw made before January 1, 1999 with a guide bar longer than 66 cm (26 in) is exempt from the brake requirement. The chain is stopped before the operator moves from cut to cut, unless the next cut is in the immediate area and the operator can safely move to it
CCOHS, saw maintenance fact sheet (revised April 24, 2024)The fact sheet reports that CSA Z62.1-15 (R2020) recommends an average brake stopping time of no more than 0.12 seconds and a maximum of no more than 0.15 seconds. It says oil, dirt and sawdust in the brake parts, and wear, can greatly reduce stopping power

OSHA describes ANSI B175.1 elsewhere as a voluntary standard, as covered in the guide on OSHA standards for tree work. CCOHS names ANSI B175.1-2021 and CSA Z62.3-11 (R2021) as the kind of kickback standards a saw's devices are designed to meet.

Brake standards from standards bodies

ISO 6535:2015 specifies methods for measuring the braking time and release force of manually operated chain brakes on portable hand-held chain-saws. ISO 13772:2018 specifies a method for checking the functioning and performance of the non-manually actuated chain brake on an electric or petrol powered portable hand-held chain-saw. Both are shown as current on the Swiss standards association's shop. ISO 11681-1:2022, for chain-saws for forest work, lists kickback and balance as outside its scope for machines with an engine displacement of more than 80 cm3. The full table of which standard covers which saw is in the standards guide, linked from the related pages below.

Credit: the HSE statements are adapted from HSE publication INDG317, Crown copyright, used under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Sources