Council-owned firm fined after worker receives electric shock

Date:

2 July 2012

Swindon Commercial Services, a wholly owned subsidiary of Swindon Borough Council, has been fined after an agency employee received an electric shock whilst securing fencing at a play area.

The worker, who doesn't wish to be named, had undertaken work for Swindon Commercial Services for a number of years and was working at the town's Shaw Ridge Play Park when the incident happened on 23 April 2010.

The worker, who lives in the town, was hitting metal road pins into soft ground in order to secure temporary fencing at the renovation project, when one of the pins he was holding made contact with a high voltage underground electric cable. He suffered burns to his hands and chest.

Swindon Commercial Services, of Cheney Manor Industrial Estate, today pleaded guilty at Swindon Magistrates' Court to breaching Section 34(3) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 in a prosecution brought by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). The company was fined £12,000 and ordered to pay costs of £4,403.

HSE's investigation found that Swindon Commercial Services failed to plan the work properly. The company did not carry out an appropriate risk assessment and did not refer to plans of underground services from the appropriate utility companies. The company also failed to provide cable avoidance tools to locate and mark and underground services.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE Inspector Stephan Axt-Simmonds, said:

"This was an incident that could have easily been avoided had the company undertaken the correct planning procedures and provided the right equipment to ensure that they knew the location of any underground utility services before allowing workers to penetrate the ground with metal equipment."

Further information on British Standard BS1722-18:2011, which shows ways in which to brace and secure temporary security fencing, visit www.bsigroup.com

Notes to editors

1. The 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 34(3) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 states:"No construction work which is liable to create a risk to health or safety from an underground service, or from damage to or disturbance of it, shall be carried out unless suitable and sufficient steps (including any steps required by this regulation) have been taken to prevent such risk, so far as is reasonably practicable."

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