Wednesbury firm fined for health and safety offences

Date:

14 December 2009

Release No:

WM483/09

A large multinational Wednesbury-based firm has been fined by West Bromwich magistrates for health and safety breaches and failing to promptly report an injury.

KTC (Edibles) Ltd pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health & Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and Regulation 3(2) of the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995 following a number of offences at its Moorcroft Drive premises. It was fined a total of £12,500 and ordered to pay £2,388 costs.

The court heard how an employee of the company, Noshad Ali, was injured when a mezzanine floor collapsed, trapping him between 1,000kg bags of rice and beans.

The incident occurred in February 2008 but was only reported eight months later during HSE's investigation into other health and safety concerns.

HSE was first informed of the floor collapse by a Local Authority environmental health officer. A HSE inspector went to the site and was informed no one had been working in the vicinity or had been injured. Nevertheless, the inspector provided the company with advice on how to install edge protection about the hole left by the collapse.

Later in the year edge protection was still not in place and HSE served the company with a prohibition notice, to stop people working near the unprotected edge. During this visit the inspector identified other breaches of health and safety regulations, including a person being carried by a forklift truck in a homemade cage and a lorry colliding with a building, narrowly missing a person.

HSE inspector Gardabil Singh Tiwana said:

"This company showed scant regard for health and safety practice, putting their employees at risk of serious injury, if not death.

"The company lacked leadership and competence in applying the duty placed on them for the health and safety of their employees and it's lucky no one has died. Good health and safety not only protects your workers but is good for business.

"The management of KTC Edibles Ltd had ample opportunity to report the incident to the visiting authorities."

Note to editors

1. Section 2(1) of the Health & Safety at Work etc Act 1974 states: "It shall be the duty of every employer to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all his employees."
2. Regulation 3(2) of the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995 states: "Where a person at work is incapacitated for work... for more than three consecutive days...because of an injury resulting from an accident arising out of or in connection with work, the responsible person shall as soon as practicable and, in any event, within 10 days of the accident send a report thereof to the relevant enforcing authority..."
3. A free leaflet about road safety at work can be accessed on the Internet at http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg382.htm.
4. HSE issued the following enforcement notices in August -
   • Prohibition Notice to stop work near to the unguarded edges,
   • Prohibition Notice to prohibit the use of the home made cage,
   • An improvement notice for assessments related to vehicle movements and segregation.

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Issued on behalf of the HSE by COI News & PR (West Midlands)