Company and director fined after worker fractures skull
A company and its director have been fined after an employee was struck by an object while manufacturing large steel cable drums for the offshore industry. The man, who is now 54, had been working for Code-A-Weld (Great Yarmouth) Ltd when the incident happened on 19 November 2022. Although the company had manufactured steel drums […]
Council fined as school technician loses finger
A local authority has been sentenced after a worker lost his finger while operating a machine. Adi Soday, a technician at The Forest School in Horsham, lost his right index finger when it was sliced off by a circular bench saw on 13 June 2022. The 29-year-old, who worked in the design and technology (DT) […]
Explosives manufacturer fined £670,000 after worker dies
A manufacturer of military explosives has been fined £670,000 after an employee was killed and another seriously injured in an explosion at its factory near Salisbury. The two men were working on the production of MTV – an explosive substance used in military flares – at the premises of Chemring Countermeasures Limited in High Post […]
Charitable trust fined following death of volunteer
A charitable trust has been fined after a volunteer lost his life during restoration work on the Wilts and Berks Canal. Peter Konitzer was fatally crushed when a section of a wall collapsed onto him in an excavation at Pewsham locks on 24 August 2016. The 62-year-old had been inside the excavation removing temporary propping […]
Companies fined after 16-year-old worker exposed to asbestos
Two companies have been fined after a teenage worker was exposed to asbestos. The 16-year-old had been working for P Turnbull Joinery and Building Services Ltd on an outbuilding of a domestic property after the firm had been hired by Alt Berg Holding Limited to refurbish the property in Richmond, North Yorkshire. He had been […]
Company fined after delivery driver electrocuted
A company in Berkshire has been fined £30,000 after a father-of-four was electrocuted. Levi Alleyne (known as ‘Chunky’) lost his life while delivering crushed concrete at a construction site on Swallowfield Road, Reading, on 16 November 2020. Chunky was killed after the crane arm of his lorry came into close contact with an overhead power […]
Livestock auctioneers fined after man, 75, killed by cow
A company has been fined after a 75-year-old man was killed by a cow that had escaped from a livestock market in Wales. Father-of-two Huw Evans was knocked down and trampled by a cow that was being auctioned at a livestock market run by J.J. Morris Limited on 19 November 2022. The cow was being […]
Housing company fined after worker killed by concrete blocks
A housing company has been fined more than £300,000 after a driver was crushed to death by falling concrete blocks at a construction site in South Lanarkshire. Conor Joseph Morgan had been delivering materials to Shott Farm in High Blantrye, a construction site being operated by Avant Homes (Scotland) Limited, when the incident happened on […]
Man spared jail for carrying out unsafe work on his own home
A man has been given a suspended sentence after he carried out unsafe work on an extension to his own home in Manchester. Abdul Rehman engaged operatives to help him build an extension to the property on Kings Crescent in Old Trafford – which was in addition to replacing the roof on the existing semi-detached […]
Equipment supplier fined after worker injured
A company in Aberdeen has been sentenced after an employee sustained serious injuries. Miroslaw Pancyzk fractured both of his wrists and sustained a fractured middle finger on his right hand while working for Harper UK (Aberdeen) Ltd at the firm’s premises on 4 April 2022. He had been using a piece of emery paper to […]
Construction company fined £2.345m after worker drowned in river
A construction company has been fined following the death of a worker. Gary Webster lost his life two days after drowning in the River Aire on 30 October 2017. Mr Webster and another worker had been on a boat removing debris at the bottom of the weir gates at Knostrop Weir when their boat capsized. […]
Site manager issued suspended sentence after death of young father
The site manager of a waste and recycling company has been given a suspended prison sentence following the death of a young father at a site in Dewsbury. Wayne Griffiths, who was also a former director of Arthur Brook Limited, was given a ten-month custodial sentence, which was suspended for 18 months. It followed the […]
Manufacturing company fined £15,000 for wood dust failures
A manufacturing company has been fined £15,000 after exposing its own workers to wood dust and failing to comply with two improvement notices. Wood dust can cause serious and often irreversible health problems, including sino-nasal cancer, asthma and dermatitis. Employers have a legal responsibility to prevent or adequately control exposure in the workplace. After concerns […]
Company director avoids prison over wood dust failures
The director of a Norwich woodworking company has avoided an immediate spell behind bars after he exposed his employees to harmful wood dust. Wood dust can cause serious and often irreversible health problems, including sino-nasal cancer, asthma and dermatitis. Employers have a legal responsibility to prevent or adequately control exposure in the workplace. John Risby, […]
Company fined after 21-year-old worker dies
A company in Peterborough has been fined £67,000 after a young employee lost his life. George Setchfield was found unconscious over the side of a large container while working for Electrostatic Magic Limited at the firm’s site in Peterborough. George’s mum says his passing has affected “every aspect” of her life. The 21-year-old had entered […]
NHS trust fined after employee found unconscious in manhole
Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust has been fined £480,000 after an employee suffered a brain injury after he was found unconscious in a manhole. The man had been unblocking a drain at the hospital on 1 February 2022 when he was discovered by other members of staff. He was rescued from the manhole by […]
Arriva and cleaning firm fined after worker killed at bus depot
A national bus company and a commercial cleaning firm have been fined after a “much loved young man” was killed at a depot in Hemel Hempstead. Albin Trstena, from Tottenham, was working for Cordant Cleaning Limited, when he was hit by a reversing bus being driven by a colleague on 5 November 2019. The 25-year-old […]
Monthly roundup – December 2023
The final month of the year has seen the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) conclude complex prosecutions against two care settings. December also saw cases relating to two frightening offshore incidents that resulted in fines totalling more than £1million. Another prosecution came about after a member of the public captured shocking footage on their mobile […]
Company and director sentenced after worker fractures arm and leg
A company and its director have been sentenced after an employee fell from height and suffered serious injuries. Andrew Smith fractured his left femur, left elbow, left arm and pelvis after falling approximately three metres off a ladder on 28 July 2021. He had been working for Profascias Ltd at Park Lane Primary School in […]
North Wales health board fined after failings resulted in woman’s death
One of the largest health boards in Wales has been fined £200,000 after a patient died in its care. Llandudno Magistrates’ Court heard that 46-year-old Dawn Owen was found unconscious at the Hergest Unit – a secure mental health unit – at Ysbyty Gwynedd in Bangor on 20 April 2021. Dawn’s family have called on […]