“No-one is in charge of health and safety” – stone company fined after workshop floor covered in hazardous dust[1]
HSE inspectors left stunned by employee concerns HSE guidance on artificial stone dust recently updated A company that manufactures popular stone kitchen worktops has been fined £60,000 after it repeatedly failed to protect workers from exposure to hazardous dust. Inspectors from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) visited Inova Stone Ltd nine times over a […]
Wood supplier hit with £40,000 for failing to protect workers from dust[4]
Workshop caked in dust when HSE inspected Guidance is available to prevent excessive exposure A wood supplier has been fined £40,000 for failing to protect its workers from exposure to wood dust. Fakenham-based Nat Pal Limited was visited by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) in April 2023. Dust was found scattered across the floor, […]
Fine for manufacturing firm after man loses finger in machinery[7]
A manufacturing company has been fined £20,000 after a worker lost part of his finger in machinery at its site in St Helens. The man was injured at Film & Foil Solutions Ltd, which makes flexible film used in the food industry, on 4 December 2023. He was using a machine that converts and folds […]
British Airways fined more than £3million following worker injuries at Heathrow[10]
Both workers “fortunate to be alive”, says HSE lawyer HSE guidance available on working from height and safe handling of baggage Specific guidance on airside safety management available from Civil Aviation Authority British Airways has been fined more than £3million after two employees fell from height and sustained serious injuries. The airline was prosecuted by […]
Farm fined after worker’s leg trapped in machine[13]
“Safe stop” procedure must be followed when using potato harvesters, says regulator A farming partnership has been fined £20,000 after an employee trapped his leg in a potato harvester machine whilst working on a farm in Cheshire. The employee, who was 20-years-old at the time, was working for LP Ollier & Son on its potato […]
Car dealership fined after employees exposed to risks from vibrating tools[17]
Two employees diagnosed with Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS) following repeated exposure. One worker says he had symptoms of HAVS for around eight years. Guidance to keep staff safe is available. A car dealership franchise in Devon and Cornwall has been fined more than £200,000 after two of its workers were diagnosed with Hand Arm […]
Construction boss avoids jail after worker died during house extension[20]
Stephen Pywell fell while walking on roof beams HSE guidance on working at height is available The director of a Leicester-based construction company has been given a suspended prison sentence after a man fell from height while working on a house extension and died in hospital several weeks later. Stephen Pywell was working under the […]
School trust fined after member of public hit by falling tree branch[23]
A school academy trust has been fined and a man given a suspended prison sentence after a member of the public was hit by a falling tree branch. Bishop Bewick Catholic Education Trust and gardening services provider Nicolas Thépot (trading as ‘The Green Yem’) both pleaded guilty to health and safety breaches following the incident, […]
Firm fined more than £500,000 after shift worker fell to his death[26]
HSE guidance on working at height and safe use of machinery is available A North Yorkshire company has been fined more than half a million pounds after a night shift worker fell to his death. Mark Pinder, 51, was working for East Riding Sacks Ltd, a manufacturer of paper sacks, at its site in Stamford […]
April 2025 – A roundup of HSE’s top stories[29]
April saw a number of significant stories from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), with multiple major prosecutions, including the workplace regulator bringing one of its most complex and lengthy investigations to a conclusion resulting in a £6million fine. We also prosecuted a health board in Wales, a large chemical manufacturing company, as well as […]
Fine for company and director after employee dies from fall through roof[33]
HSE guidance says all work at height must be properly planned A cladding company and its director have been fined following the death of a worker who fell through a fragile roof whilst replacing cladding panels. The 61-year-old was working for Camclad Contractors Limited, replacing cladding panels on a former abattoir that had been damaged […]
Innovative workplace safety designs win MSD risk reduction awards[37]
Two UK companies have been honoured for their innovative workplace safety designs that reduce the risk of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) in their operations. Ainscough Crane Hire has won the MSD Risk Reduction through Design Award 2024/25, while UPM Raflatac Ltd has received the Small to Medium Enterprise (SME) Recognition Award. Both awards, sponsored by the […]
Company fined after death of man whose life was ‘unjustly cut short’[40]
A construction company has been fined after a kitchen fitter was crushed to death by a pack of concrete blocks at a site in the Cotswolds. Martin Dunford, who was 33, was ‘very much loved’ by his family who say they miss him ‘every day’ since the incident on 23 January 2020. Martin, from Pocklington […]
Farmer fined following death of worker[43]
A Gloucestershire farmer has been fined after the shepherdess he employed was killed in a quad bike crash. Laura Simmons, was working alone on 2nd June 2023, spraying weed killer along fence lines, using the all-terrain vehicle (ATV) at a farm in Charlton Abbots near Cheltenham. The overloaded quad bike overturned. The 22-year-old was found by […]
Window manufacturing company fined after worker seriously injures hand[46]
A window manufacturer has been fined £100,000 after a teenage worker had two fingers severed by a cross-cutting saw. The 19-year-old was working for Ford Windows Limited at the company’s site in Sheffield when the incident occurred. He had loaded a cross-cut saw with a length of windowsill, which had been stored outside in the […]
Paddleboard tour leader jailed over deaths of four people[50]
A paddleboard business owner has been jailed for 10 years and six months for gross negligence manslaughter following the deaths of four people in 2021. Nerys Lloyd, 39, from Aberavon, who was the owner and sole director of Salty Dog Co Ltd, was charged with the gross negligence manslaughter of Paul O’Dwyer, 42, Andrea Powell, 41, […]
Council fined for multiple failures on Guided Busway[53]
• Major transport system operated for almost a decade without basic safety measures • Council “chose to appeal enforcement action instead of acting on concerns”, says regulator • Families pay tribute to loved ones Cambridgeshire County Council has been fined £6 million after pleading guilty to serious safety failings on its Guided Busway that led […]
Company fined after load falls and kills cyclist[57]
A road haulage company in Nuneaton has been fined £90,000 after a metal heat exchanger fell from its lorry killing a cyclist. A Heavy Goods Vehicle (HGV), operated by JW Morley Transport Ltd, was driving down College Street, Nuneaton, on 18 June 2021 carrying four heat exchangers weighing over 10,000kg, when as it went round […]
Social housing provider fined after men exposed to risks from vibrating tools[59]
Two employees diagnosed with Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS) in July 2023, following repeated exposure to vibration. One estimated he used vibrating equipment for 90% of his working day. A social housing provider has been fined £140,000 following a prosecution by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Stonewater Limited employed two men as estate assistants […]
Truffles Bakery fined after employee loses part of finger[62]
A Sussex bakery firm has been fined £12,000, for failing to prevent access to dangerous parts of machinery, after an employee lost part of his left index finger. Kevin Norman was working at the company’s production site in Henfield, West Sussex, on 20 December 2023, when he reached into the dough divider to remove a […]