Accident analysis is performed in four steps:
Fact gathering: After an accident happened a forensic process starts to gather all possibly relevant facts that may contribute to understanding the accident.
Fact Analysis: After the forensic process has been completed or at least delivered some results, the facts are put together to give a "big picture." The history of the accident is reconstructed and checked for consistency and plausibility.
Conclusion Drawing: If the accident history is sufficiently informative, conclusions can be drawn about causation and contributing factors.
Counter-measures: In some cases the development of counter-measures is desired or recommendations have to be issued to prevent further accidents of the same kind.