Groundworks Company Fined £55,440 After Worker Suffers Several Leg Fractures
The below case highlights the importance of carrying out a thorough risk assessment and ensuring appropriate safety measures and supervision are in place for a load handling operation to proceed.
Smith Construction Group Limited of Maidstone Road, Kingston, Milton Keynes has been fined after an employee was struck in the leg by a metal bow shackle as they were laying a sewer pipe, causing multiple leg fractures.
Luton Magistrates’ Court heard that on 19 July 2018, the worker – a machine cab operator was laying a High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) foul sewer pipe (approximately weighing 20 tonnes) alongside three other plant workers who were situated across a 240 metre trench to lift and drag the pipe.
Unfortunately, a sling used to pull the pipe failed disastrously resulting in a bow shackle linkage to hurtle back towards the machine cab operator. The worker was struck in the leg by the solid metal shackle, which weighed 7.5kg causing several leg fractures that required extensive surgery.
A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation determined the company had failed to safely plan and carry out the operation, and without sufficient supervision.
Smith Construction Group Limited pled guilty to breaching Section 2 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. The company was fined £55,440 and ordered to pay costs of £971.80.
Smith Construction Group Limited of Maidstone Road, Kingston, Milton Keynes has been fined after an employee was struck in the leg by a metal bow shackle as they were laying a sewer pipe, causing multiple leg fractures.
Luton Magistrates’ Court heard that on 19 July 2018, the worker – a machine cab operator was laying a High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) foul sewer pipe (approximately weighing 20 tonnes) alongside three other plant workers who were situated across a 240 metre trench to lift and drag the pipe.
Unfortunately, a sling used to pull the pipe failed disastrously resulting in a bow shackle linkage to hurtle back towards the machine cab operator. The worker was struck in the leg by the solid metal shackle, which weighed 7.5kg causing several leg fractures that required extensive surgery.
A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation determined the company had failed to safely plan and carry out the operation, and without sufficient supervision.
Smith Construction Group Limited pled guilty to breaching Section 2 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. The company was fined £55,440 and ordered to pay costs of £971.80.
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This is an alternative to our standard retainer system and offers clients an opportunity to obtain advice where the cost is pre-determined for the whole year. This arrangement would suit clients who may from time to time need to seek legal advice but may hold off preferring a ‘wait and see’ approach.
In our experience, early intervention can reduce the risk of the situation escalating as we can give advice and guidance that nips regulatory issues in the bud before they develop into something far worse. We also strongly recommend our clients consider taking out legal expenses insurance to cover investigations and prosecutions brought by regulators.
DyneProtect© has teamed up with Butcher & Barlow solicitors to provide DyneProtect© clients access to a specialist team of corporate and commercial lawyers for up to 1 hours’ worth of free telephone advice/legal consultation.
Butcher & Barlow have a dedicated commercial and agricultural hub on Gadbrook Park in Northwich which provides advice and assistance to a host of business clients in specialist areas such as Corporate and Commercial Law, Commercial Property, Private Client and Agriculture.
If you have a corporate or commercial issue which Dyne Solicitors is unable to handle, then Butcher & Barlow’s Commercial team will certainly be able to step in and assist.
DyneProtect© has also negotiated price reductions on OLAT / Driver CPC courses run by training providers KP Legal Limited who are offering discounts to DyneProtect© clients on Operator Licensing Awareness / Compliance training (-20%) and Periodic Driver CPC training (-10%).
