Tyre firm fined after worker suffers head injury

Date:

2 November 2010

Release No:

WM248/10

Wolverhampton tyre company, Goodyear Dunlop, was in court on 1 November after a teenage employee fractured his skull whilst maintaining machinery.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted Goodyear Dunlop Tyres UK Ltd after one of its maintenance team, Karl Illidge, struck his head at the firm's Stafford Road, Bushbury, Wolverhampton site.

Wolverhampton Magistrates heard that on 11 September 2009, Mr Illidge, a 17 year old apprentice, was working with two other mechanical maintenance engineers to repair a tyre press when the internal bladder of the press re-energised and burst. This blew the lid off the press with great force and noise, causing Mr Illidge to move very quickly out of the way and, in doing so, he struck his head on nearby equipment.

The firm, whose head office is in Erdington, Birmingham, was fined £18,250 and ordered to pay £4,807 costs after contravening Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.

HSE inspector Amarjit Kalay said:

"This incident was entirely preventable had there been a safe system in place to ensure that services to the press had been isolated prior to the start of the maintenance work. It is also clear that the maintenance team were insufficiently trained to carry out the necessary diagnostic work on this piece of machinery."

Notes to editors

1. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain's national regulator for workplace health and safety. It aims to reduce death, injury and ill health. It does so through research, information and advice, promoting training, new or revised regulations and codes of practice, and working with local authority partners by inspection, investigation and enforcement.
2. Section 2(1) of the HSWA 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."
3. Visit http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/books/l22.htm for Approved Code of Practice and Guidance - Safe use of work equipment - Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998

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Issued on behalf of the Health and Safety Executive by COI News & PR (West Midlands)