Explosion death prompts £85,000 fine for father and son engineering firm

Date:

23 October 2009

Release No:

543/SWW/09

A father and son engineering company in Devon have been fined at total of £85,000 after pleading guilty to health and safety offences following an explosion that killed an employee.

The R J Bateman (Engineering) Limited site, where the incident occurred

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) brought the case after breaches by R J Bateman (Engineering) Limited, of High Street, Midsomer Norton, Bath and by its two directors, father Richard Bateman and son John Bateman.

The safety failures led to the explosion of a coolant drum and the death of 40-year-old Anthony Reed on 3 April 2006 from injuries sustained.

The company, which has a factory at Bycott, Chumleigh in Devon and makes crop spraying equipment, pleaded guilty to breaches under Section 2 and 3 of the Health and Safety at Work (HSWA) etc. Act 1974. Richard and John Bateman both admitted a breach of Section 37 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 at Exeter Crown Court today.

The R J Bateman (Engineering) Limited site, where the incident occurred

Anthony Reed had only started with the company one month earlier. He was welding some practice pieces on a make-shift work bench, consisting of a metal plate supported by a modified 200-litre coolant drum. The drum was being used to collect waste materials at the factory site in Bycott, including highly flammable liquids that were ignited. Mr Reed suffered serious head injuries in the subsequent explosion and died from his injuries eight days later in hospital.

Mr Reed was a novice welder and the company was found guilty of failing to protect him and other staff working at the factory.

The R J Bateman (Engineering) Limited site, where the incident occurred

The firm was also found guilty of breaching regulation 3 (1) of the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995, following an earlier incident in November 2004 which the company failed to report to HSE. On that occasion self-employed worker Trevor McWilliams suffered chest injuries after falling from a roof extension at the factory site in Chumleigh.

Fines for the offences were as follows:

• R J Bateman Limited was fined a total of £65,000 (£15,000 for breaching Section 3 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act; £5,000 for breaching Regulation 3(1) of the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations and £45,000 for breaching Section 2 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act - see Notes to editors)
• R J Bateman Limited was ordered to pay costs of £67,000
• Company director Richard Bateman was fined £10,000
• John Bateman was fined £10,000

Speaking after the hearing, HSE Inspector, Jo Fitzgerald, said:

The R J Bateman (Engineering) Limited site, where the incident occurred

"This company operates in the sort of industrial environment where there can be significant risks to staff, which must be managed well to keep people safe. The risk of working with flammable substances, in particular, cannot be underestimated.

"Mr Reed should never have been in the position he found himself in, practising his skills using a makeshift set up, with no knowledge of the significant danger in which he had placed himself. This terrible tragedy was the result of years of inadequate health and safety management and could have been avoided if proper systems had been adopted by the company."

Notes to editors

1. R J Bateman (Engineering) Limited pleaded guilty to breaching Section 3 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, in that: 'it failed to conduct their undertaking in such a way as to ensure, so far as was reasonably practicable, that persons not in its employment, including John Trevor McWilliams, were not exposed to risks to their health and safety'.
2. R J Bateman (Engineering) Limited pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 3(1) of the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995, in that: 'it failed to report to the relevant enforcing authority an accident to John Trevor McWilliams'.
3. R J Bateman (Engineering) Limited pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, in that: 'it failed to ensure, so far as was reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all their employees, including Anthony Reed'.
4. Richard John Bateman and Jason John Bateman, in their capacity as company directors, each pleaded guilty to a breach of Section 37 under Section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and 'that offence being attributable to neglect on his part'.
5. Further guidance and advice on health and safety issues relating to working with flammable materials can be found on the fire and explosion pages of HSE's website at: indg297 - Safety in gas welding, cutting and similar processes
6. Further guidance on the management of health and safety is covered in the risk management pages at: HSE: Risk management - health and safety in the workplace

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Issued on behalf of the Health and Safety Executive by COI News and PR South West