It is paramount to ensure your Health and Safety procedures in place are robust enough to protect you, your business and your workforce from accidents occurring, particularly in the current harsh economic climate.  CQMS Ltd urges all employers to review their arrangements and procedures, supervision and competency of employees to ensure they are doing all they reasonably can to prevent workplace injuries and dangerous occurrences. 

The cases outlined below have been taken from the press and are provided as a stark reminder of what can happen when those arrangements are inadequate. 

 

£60k fine after highway worker’s fatal fall
01 December 2011

Two construction companies have been fined a total of £60,000 following the death of a worker who fell from a cherry picker on a dual carriageway in Liverpool.

The HSE prosecuted Amey Infrastructure Services Ltd and Mouchel Parkham Services Ltd following the incident in Seaforth in August 2006.

Liverpool Crown Court heard that 61 year old Mr Peter Cole, employee of Amey Infrastructure Services Ltd, had been replacing the lights on the central reservation when the cherry picker’s lifting arm collapsed.  Mr. Cole fell nearly eight metres and landed on the back of the vehicle.  He died from his injuries in hospital later that day.

The HSE investigation found that neither company had adequate systems for checking and maintaining the cherry picker, both when it was first delivered or throughout the hire period.  The cherry picker needed to be repaired on several occasions while it was on hire to the companies, and had been subjected to heavy use in all weather conditions for almost a decade.

Investigating HSE Inspector, Dave Guyers, said:

“Both companies had a legal duty to ensure Mr Cole remained safe but their checking and maintenance systems were inadequate and thus allowed him to use a cherry picker that was in a poor condition.  Heavy usage and a regular repair record demand that checking and maintenance procedures are carried out thoroughly.”

 

£10k fine for injury due to lack of guard
01 December 2011

A Cheshire factory worker could have lost his arm when it was dragged into an industrial conveyor belt, a court has heard.

The 56 year old worker, who has asked not to be named, suffered a broken elbow, crush injuries to his left hand and bruising down the left hand side of his body in the incident at Amcol Minerals Europe Ltd’s plant in Winsford.  The court heard that the worker had been helping to clean the conveyor system in March 2010; he had climbed up a ladder to a gantry to reach the conveyor belt and check that the residue from a powder had been removed when his left arm caught the underneath of the moving belt and his arm was dragged into the rotating mechanism.  He was off work for several weeks due to the extent of his injuries but has now been able to return to work.

Amcol Minerals Europe Ltd pleaded guilty to breaching the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 by failing to prevent access to a dangerous part of machinery while it was still operating and was fined £10,000 plus costs of £6,702.50.

 

£13k fine after cable strike leads to scarring
16 November 2011

A construction company has been prosecuted for safety failings after a young worker was left permanently scarred when he struck an underground cable during digging work.

The court heard Mr Baisley and a fellow employee had been instructed by a director of Kim Barker Construction Ltd to dig two holes outside their site entrance so they could erect a new company sign.  Part way through the job, the two workers hired a drill to break through some concrete and took it in turns to use it.  During Mr Baisley’s turn, the concrete gave way and he pierced a 415 volt cable which resulted in an electrical explosion causing severe burns to his hands, arms, face and chest.  The location of the cable was not established by the company before the digging work started.

Kim Barker Construction Ltd pleaded guilty to a breach of the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 and were subsequently fined £13,000 and ordered to pay £2,039.10 in costs.

Inspector John Dutton said:

“This is an example of how a simple job, no matter how straightforward it may seem on the face of it, can have serious, if not fatal, consequences if not properly planned.

“There are lessons from this case that are relevant to many companies who decide to carry out such work.  First and foremost, when digging where underground services may be present, a firm needs to carry out an investigation to locate those services.”

 

£20k fine after worker hit by forklift
04 November 2011

Collier Industrial Waste Ltd was prosecuted by the HSE after a 35-tonne vehicle reversed into a worker at its plant in Trafford Park in January 2010, leaving him with damage to internal organs and multiple broken bones.

The HSE investigation found the company did not have sufficient systems in place to protect workers from reversing vehicles on the site.  This could have included marked walkways, a one-way system or making sure any reversing vehicles were guided by another worker on the ground.

Collier Industrial Waste Ltd was fined £20,000 plus costs of £9,410 after pleading guilty to a breach of the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 by failing to make sure pedestrians and vehicles could work safely.

 

£15k fine following worker’s finger amputation
09 November 2011

Caledonian Building Systems Ltd have been fined £15,000 plus costs of £7,328 after a worker was left with permanent injuries when a lifting operation went wrong.

Banksman John Hughes was working at the company’s premises near Newark in Nottinghamshire, helping a fork lift truck driver to raise an 11 tonne modular building unit off some blocks and a wheeled axle, on to a lorry, but the unstable load started to rock.  Mr Hughes put his right hand on to the wooden block, to move it out of the way, but one end of the unit came down on his fingers.

His index finger was crushed and had to be amputated at the knuckle, however eighteen months later after continuing problems it was completely removed.  His middle finger was also damaged.  Mr Hughes was off work for twelve weeks in total before returning to work.

A HSE investigation found the lifting operation was disorganised and the employees involved were not provided with clear information or instructions.  It was unclear who was supposed to participate in the operation, what their role was, which equipment would be used and whether the unit would be moved elsewhere or simply vertically lifted.

Caledonian Building Systems Ltd pleaded guilty to breaching the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999.

 

£12k fine after HGV crushed worker
24 November 2011

A Dartford firm has been fined after an employee was seriously injured when he was crushed by a reversing lorry at the KBC Logistics depot in Grays, Essex.

The court heard how driver Leslaw Chorazak was waiting to take his place at the wheel of an articulated 45ft heavy goods vehicle.  Mr Chorazak was guiding the returning driver as he reversed the lorry into the poorly lit yard in the early hours of the morning; as he bent to pick up his torch, the driver lost sight of him and continued to reverse, crushing him between the back of the lorry and the office wall.  Mr Chorazak suffered severe crush injuries to his right arm, body and collar bone and spent several days in hospital.

The HSE investigation found the yard was poorly lit, there was no means of separating pedestrians and vehicles, there was no proper supervision on site and no health and safety training for the staff or their managers.

KBC Logistics pleaded guilty to breaching the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and was fined £12,000 plus costs of £3,009.80.

 

£2,500 fine after gas pipe strike explosion
04 November 2011

A Cheshire builder, Paul Leonard, has pleaded guilty to a breach of the CDM Regulations 2007 and been fined £2,500 plus costs of £3,500 after a worker was badly burned in a gas explosion in September 2009.

Paul Leonard had been hired to repair a septic tank and arranged for a trench to be dug out to gain access.  Labourer Stephen Rowley was using a power tool in the trench to remove damaged pipework from the tank, when the digger operator struck an underground pipe containing liquid petroleum gas (LPG).  Sparks from the power tool set alight the leaking gas and created a fireball in the trench, setting Mr Rowley’s clothes alight and leaving him with burns to his face, neck and both arms.

The HSE investigation found Mr Leonard had failed to consider that gas pipework might be present, and did not ensure the gas supply was isolated before starting work.  He also failed to provide trench supports and there was no means of access, such as a ladder, to get in and out of the trench.

 

£12k fine after fall from balcony
05 December 2011

Preseli Construction & Maintenance Ltd and its director, Mr Christopher Newell, have been prosecuted after a labourer suffered serious injuries following a fall from a balcony on a construction site.

The court heard that in March 2010, Mr Karl Kraus was working on the build of a large domestic property, and had been instructed to remove a concrete block which was placed across a doorway.  As he proceeded to throw the block, he fell backwards on to the balcony and then seven metres to the ground below.  Mr Kraus spent six days in hospital and underwent surgery to pin the bone in his left heel and was subsequently in a plaster cast for approximately ten months.

The HSE investigation found that the three storey house was being built without scaffold or any form of fall prevention and that the company and its director had failed to ensure that work at height was properly planned and supervised, and they failed to ensure it was carried out in a safe manner.

Preseli Construction & Maintenance Ltd pleaded guilty to breaching the Work at Height Regulations 2005 and was fined £12,000 and ordered to pay costs of £2,376.25.

Director Mr Christopher Newell also pleaded guilty, to breaching Section 37(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, and was fined £4,000 plus costs of £2,376.25.  He is also disqualified from acting as a company director, managing or in any way controlling a company for at least two years.

 

£2k fine for failure to hold insurance
2 November 2011

A kitchen and bedroom furniture manufacturer from Corby has been fined for failing to insure the company against liability for employee injury or disease.

When the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) visited Alina Trade Limited's Maylan Road premises on 2 March 2011, the company was unable to produce on request a certificate of Employers' Liability Compulsory Insurance (ELCI) to HSE inspectors, which employers are required to hold by law.

Corby magistrates heard that despite letters, and issuing a formal Notice to Produce the ELCI document, Alina Trade did not.  HSE visited the company for a second time on 8 June, and again it was unable to produce a certificate.

The company, whose registered address is Dukes Hill, Bagshot, Surrey, pleaded guilty to contravening Section 1(1) of the Employers' Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969 and was fined £2,000 with £1,567 in costs.

Following the hearing, inspector Sally Harris said:

"Alina Trade Limited had many opportunities to produce a valid insurance certificate, so many in fact the firm appeared to be deliberately flouting the law.

"Employers are responsible for the health and safety of their employees when they are at work. While the law expects active steps to be taken to protect workers, if an employee does suffer harm then Employers' Liability Compulsory Insurance ensures that any justifiable civil claim by an employee can be met."

 

£12k fine for failing to prevent access to dangerous machinery
2 November 2011

A precision engineering company has been fined for failing to prevent access to dangerous parts on one of its machines, even after several warnings at its site in Hailsham, East Sussex.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted Metaltech Precision Engineers Ltd for failing to prevent access to dangerous parts of machinery or stop the movement of dangerous parts of machinery before it could be accessed by any person at its Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machining centre facility in Diplocks Way, Hailsham, East Sussex.

Eastbourne Magistrates' Court heard that on 12 December 2006, Metaltech was issued with an instant visit report following an HSE inspection which found the interlocks guarding a CNC milling machine had been disabled. On 31 March 2009, an unannounced inspection once again found that interlocking guards had been disabled and the firm was served with an Improvement Notice that required the introduction of a monitoring system to ensure that the interlocks on the machines were working.

During an unannounced inspection on the 23 June 2011, the HSE inspector witnessed that an interlocking guard on a machine had again been disabled and the system put in place to monitor them was not being followed. A Prohibition Notice was served.

Metaltech Precision Engineers Ltd, of Diplocks Way, Hailsham, East Sussex, pleaded guilty to an offence under 33(1)(c) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The firm was fined £12,000 and ordered to pay costs of £3,978.

 

£14k fine plus costs for fatal crush
31 October 2011

A factory worker was killed when his neck was crushed by a pneumatic hatch on a pet food mixing machine, a court heard today.

H G Gladwell and Sons Ltd, which manufactures animal feed and pet food at Copdock Mill just outside Ipswich, was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) for failing to ensure the sliding hatch on the top of the machine was safe.

Ipswich Crown Court heard that mill operator/supervisor Terrence Gardiner, 61, was believed to be attempting to retrieve an plastic jug that had fallen into the machine when the incident happened on 19 May 2009.

His workmates found Mr Gardiner lying face down on top of the mixing machine with his head and right arm trapped by the pneumatic hatch. He was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics.

H G Gladwell & Sons Ltd of Copdock Mill, Ipswich, admitted breaching the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998, Regulation 11 by failing to ensure effective measures were taken to prevent access to the hatch, but this failure was not the cause of Mr Gardiner's death.

The company was fined £14,000 and ordered to pay £20,437.40 costs

 

£145k fine for fragile roof death
31 October 2011

A Trafford firm has been fined £145,000 after an employee plunged ten metres through a fragile roof onto a concrete floor, and died two years later from his injuries.

J Mills (Contractors) Ltd was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) for failing to put any safety measures in place to stop 32-year-old Alan Kerwin falling while he was replacing a skylight on a warehouse in Ashton-under-Lyne.

Manchester Crown Court heard that the father-of-one from Lower Broughton, Salford, sustained several serious injuries in the fall on 31 March 2007, including a fractured skull.

Mr Kerwin developed post-traumatic epilepsy as a result of his injuries, and was never able to return to work. He died from an epileptic seizure in April 2009.

The court heard that Mr Kerwin's line manager had received advice from HSE just one week before the incident which could have saved his life. An HSE inspector explained to him how to safely manage work on fragile roofs, but this advice was not acted upon.

The incident occurred at Kayley Industrial Estate on Richmond Street in Ashton-under-Lyne, where Mr Kerwin was working a Saturday shift. He was on the roof with two of his colleagues when he placed his weight on the delicate cement surrounding the glass.

The cement shattered, and Mr Kerwin fell through the gap. The HSE investigation found J Mills had not carried out a risk assessment or put any safety measures in place to protect him.

J Mills (Contractors) Ltd, of Higher Road in Urmston, admitted breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 by putting workers at risk. The company was ordered to pay £7,700 in prosecution costs in addition to the fine on 31 October 2011.

 

£14k fine for exposure to asbestos
28 October 2011

A Cardiff letting agent has been sentenced after a handyman was exposed to asbestos-containing material while carrying out work on a client's property.

A self-employed handyman from Cardiff regularly carried out work on properties managed by Rochefort Shugar Ltd and on 15 October 2010 was sent to a domestic property in Sully to fix a leaking porch roof.

As he was removing a sheet of material from the underside panel of the damaged roof, he realised it was asbestos-containing insulation board. The sheet was broken during removal and the surrounding area was contaminated with asbestos debris.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuting, told Barry Magistrates' Court the removal of the panel and the sweeping up and bagging of the debris would have resulted in the significant release of asbestos fibres into the air.

The handyman wore two dust masks while removing the board on 15 October 2010, but did not undergo any decontamination procedures and was not wearing a protective, disposable suit. The court heard the fibres could have contaminated his hair, skin and clothing and may also have been inhaled.

When asbestos fibres are inhaled they can cause serious diseases which are responsible for around 4,000 deaths a year. There are four main diseases caused by asbestos, all of which can develop much later after exposure - they are mesothelioma (which is always fatal); lung cancer (almost always fatal); asbestosis (not always fatal, but it can be very debilitating) and diffuse pleural thickening.

A licensed asbestos contractor was later called in to decontaminate the area, to ensure no further people were put at risk of exposure to the substance.

Rochefort Shugar Ltd. of Tudor House, 16 Cathedral Road, Cardiff were found guilty of breaching Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and was fined £1,500 and with £2,500 costs.

 

£230k fine for chicken company after worker loses fingers
25 October 2011

A major European food business producing raw and prepared chicken products has been fined a total of £230,000 after two incidents at its Suffolk factory, one of which led to an employee losing four fingers, part of his thumb and some of the palm of his right hand.

Night shift supervisor Shaun Alexander, 42, was helping a member of his team to clean equipment at the 2 Sisters Food Group's plant at Flixton, near Bungay, in December 2009 when his hand was pulled into two rotating cogs and crushed. A safety guard had been removed from the machinery.

A month later, in January 2010, fork lift driver Malcolm Raven, 54, from Lowestoft, was left in charge of a pre-slaughter area for chickens. He entered an enclosure to clear a blockage in the system and his arm was trapped and broken. The company had fitted a by-pass device to over-ride a safety control that would have prevented this happening.

2 Sisters Food Group, based at West Bromwich in the West Midlands, was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) over both incidents. The company admitted a breach of Section 2 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 for each incident and was fined a total of £230,000 with costs of £24,350.

 

£200k fine after fatal explosion
17 October 2011

A multinational cement firm has been fined £200,000 following the death of a worker in an explosion at its Rugby premises.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted CEMEX UK Operations Ltd, which makes cement and building products for the construction industry, after the death of 28-year-old Peter Reynolds, of Rugby, on 15 January 2008.

The force of the explosion was so great that it blew Mr Reynolds out through the side of the building onto the road ten metres below. An ambulance crew attended but he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Leamington Spa Crown Court heard the married man was treating waste cement dust in the bypass dust plant at the company's Rugby Cement Works in Lawford Road.  While he was clearing a blockage in the lower mixer, there was a violent explosion of steam and dust from inside the machine.

HSE's investigation into the incident found that CEMEX had recognised the potential for blockages to cause explosions as steam pressure built up within the mixer, but took no action to prevent them.

The court also heard the company had failed to review its risk assessment following a previous incident in May 2006, when another man was injured using the same machine. This explosion bent a metal-cladded external wall, pushing it out by 50cm.

CEMEX Operations UK Ltd, of Coldharbour Lane, Thorpe, Egham, Surrey, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. The company was fined £200,000 and ordered to pay £172,000 costs.

 

£1,000,000 fine for M&S after asbestos failings
27 September 20111

Marks and Spencer plc and three of its contractors have been fined for putting members of the public, staff and construction workers at risk of exposure to asbestos-containing materials during the refurbishment of two stores in Reading and Bournemouth.

The sentencing hearing, at Bournemouth Crown Court, resulted in Marks and Spencer plc being fined £1 million and ordered to pay costs of £600,000, PA Realisations Ltd being fined £200, and Styles & Wood Limited being fined £100,000 and ordered to pay costs of £40,000, all for breaches that took place at the Marks and Spencer plc store in Broad Street, Reading.

Willmott Dixon Construction Ltd was fined £50,000 and ordered to pay costs of £75,000, for breaches that took place at the Marks and Spencer plc store in Commercial Road, Bournemouth.  Willmott Dixon Construction Ltd is applying for permission to appeal against conviction.

HSE alleged that Marks and Spencer plc failed to ensure that work at the Reading store complied with the appropriate minimum standards set out in legislation and approved codes of practice. The company had produced its own guidance on how asbestos should be removed inside its stores, and the court heard that this guidance was followed by contractors inappropriately during major refurbishment.

The contractor, PA Realisations Ltd, failed to reduce to a minimum the spread of asbestos to the Reading shop floor. Witnesses said that areas cleaned by the company were re-contaminated by air moving through the void between the ceiling tiles and the floor above, and by poor standards of work.

Styles & Wood Limited, the principal contractor at the Reading store, admitted that it should not have permitted a method of asbestos removal which did not allow for adequate sealing of the ceiling void, which resulted in risks to contractors on site.

The principal contractor at the Bournemouth store, Wilmott Dixon Construction Ltd, failed to plan, manage and monitor removal of asbestos-containing materials. It did not prevent the possibility of asbestos being disturbed by its workers in areas that had not been surveyed extensively.

 

£10k fine following fall from scaffold
22 September 2011

Spark's Mechanical Services Ltd, an Aberdeen electrical and refrigeration services company, has been fined £10,000 after a worker was seriously injured when he fell 2.6 metres from a scaffolding tower.

On 19 October 2010, Charles Howie was working on a scaffolding tower at Iceberg Ltd fish processing factory in Fraserburgh to remove two ceiling mounted refrigeration units from the coldstore.

The units were attached to the ceiling by eight bolts; four had been removed and Mr Howie continued to work on the unit before a forklift truck was in place to support it.

A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) Investigation found that at least one of the four remaining bolts fractured while Mr Howie was working on it, causing it to fall and strike the scaffold tower, throwing Mr Howie to the ground. Mr Howie suffered a collapsed lung and five fractured ribs and was unable to return to normal work duties for five months.

The HSE investigation found that Spark's Mechanical Services Ltd, Mr Howie's employer, had not ensured that suitable equipment was in place to support the refrigeration unit while it was being removed. The court was also told that the top guard rails were missing from the working side of the scaffolding platform.

Falls from height are the most common cause of fatal injuries in the workplace and are also responsible for many serious injuries. In 2009/10, 38 people in Britain died after work-related falls from height.