The formula
Risk score = Likelihood (L) × Exposure (E) × Consequence (C)
Each value is chosen from its own scale; the product gives a single number, and the decision follows from which band that number falls into.
The bands
| Score | Meaning | Expected decision |
|---|---|---|
| > 400 | Very high risk | Consider stopping the operation |
| 200 – 400 | High risk | Immediate correction |
| 70 – 200 | Substantial risk | Correction required |
| 20 – 70 | Possible risk | Attention |
| < 20 | Low | Perhaps acceptable |
Why exposure is a separate factor
This is what really separates the method from a 5×5 matrix. A matrix multiplies likelihood by severity only; Fine-Kinney inserts exposure between them. A hazardous task done once a year and the same task done every day usually land in the same matrix cell — here they do not.
The method's limit
The product reduces three separate scales to one number, and that reduction loses information. Of two lines scoring 100, one may be “rare but fatal” and the other “frequent but minor”. So the score is used for ranking rather than for the decision on its own; lines with a possible fatal outcome are handled separately regardless of score.
Keep the scale intact
Change the scale values and the bands lose their meaning. An organisation may build its own scale, but then it must build and justify its own bands too — carrying the original bands onto a different scale mixes two methods together.