Essex firm fined after contractor fell seven metres

Date:

26 October 2012

Release No:

HSE-E-104-12

An Essex manufacturing firm has been fined after a contractor suffered multiple fractures to his skull, leg, back and wrist when he fell from an unsecured platform.

The platform from which the worker fell

The 34-year-old from Colchester, who does not wish to be named, was replacing a light fitting from a makeshift work platform derived from a metal cage mounted on a wooden pallet. He had been lifted up by a reach truck, but as he started working the cage toppled sideways off the vehicle's forks and he was thrown seven metres to the ground below.

After the incident on 16 November 2011 at Adhere Industrial Tapes Ltd in Colchester the injured contractor required surgery and spent 10 days in hospital. He remains on crutches and is still undergoing physiotherapy and aqua therapy to help his recovery. He has not worked since the incident leaving his working future in doubt.

Colchester Magistrates' Court heard today (26 October) that Adhere had failed to ensure that work at height was properly planned, appropriately supervised and carried out in a safe manner.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted the company after an investigation found that the work platform used to lift the contractor lacked essential safeguards, including restraint harnesses, any means to secure the cage to the forks of the truck and a back guard to prevent entanglement in the truck's lifting gear. None of the company's drivers have been trained in lifting persons.

The court was told the company had no risk assessment or safe working procedure in place for this operation, and no procedures in place for the management of contractors.

Adhere Industrial Tapes Ltd, of Unit 1, Whitehall Industrial Estate, Whitehall Road, Colchester, Essex, was fined £12,000 and £4,806 costs after pleading guilty of breaching Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and Regulation 4(2) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998.

After the case, HSE Inspector Paul Grover, said:

"This incident resulted from the use of substandard and wholly inappropriate work equipment to perform a dangerous work operation, which was undertaken by untrained workers who lacked any supervision or instructions regarding a safe system of work.

"Working arrangements fell well below the required legal standards and these breaches of statutory provisions resulted in serous injuries of a potentially life-changing nature. Given the height the contractor fell from, the incident clearly had the potential to have fatal consequences.

"If appropriate work equipment had been used, together with a proper risk assessment, safe working procedures, training, information and supervision, the incident would have been entirely preventable."

Falls from height remain one of the major causes of serous injuries and fatalities in work-related accidents. The provisions of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 and other relevant health and safety legislation, reflect the risks arising from work at height and the standards required to protect workers engaged in these operations. For advice on working with at height visit http://www.hse.gov.uk/falls/index.htm

Notes to editors

1. Health and Safety Executive is Britain's national regulator for workplace health and safety. It aims to reduce work-related 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. www.hse.gov.uk
2. Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 states: It shall be the duty of every employer to conduct his undertaking in such a way as to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that persons not in his employment who may be affected thereby are not thereby exposed to risks to their health or safety.
3. Regulation 4(2) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 states: In selecting work equipment, every employer shall have regard to the working conditions and to the risks to the health and safety of persons which exist in the premises or undertaking in which that work equipment is to be used and any additional risk posed by the use of that work equipment.

Press enquiries

Regional reporters should call the appropriate Regional News Network press office.

Issued on behalf of the Health and Safety Executive by the Regional News Network