Company and director sentenced after employee crushed to death
A company and its director have been sentenced following the death of an employee. Robert Czachracz was crushed by two granite slabs while working for West Midlands firm Graniteland Limited on 30 November 2020. The 46-year-old, who was from Poland, had been unpacking and moving the slabs onto storage racks, using an overhead crane, at […]
Manufacturing company fined after worker fatally crushed
A manufacturing company has been fined £120,000 after a worker was killed after becoming trapped between two heavy steel beams. In May 2019, Steve Rooke, 55, was working in the workshop at Mifflin Construction Ltd in Leominster, Herefordshire. The company manufacture and install steel components for the construction industry. Steve, who had worked at the […]
HSE builds construction support to protect workers’ mental health
The construction industry has stepped-up its efforts to combat work-related stress and promote good mental health by joining Great Britain’s workplace regulator campaign. The Working Minds campaign, set up by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), welcomes six new partners in the construction industry to help reach trades and offer free support. March sees the […]
Company fined after delivery driver suffers brain injury
A company has been fined £380,000 after a delivery driver fell and suffered a traumatic brain injury while working at its site in Walsall. Timothy Bates was delivering fuel for a temporary diesel generator at Haldane Fisher Limited’s timber processing site on Long Street when he fell from a trailer on 28 July 2022. Mr […]
Company fined after worker’s skull fractured
A company in Salford has been fined £160,000 after a worker fractured his skull during the refurbishment of a property in central Manchester. Dean Noble, from Wythenshawe, fell while working at a premises on Oldham Street on 11 December 2020. The 53-year-old had fallen through a gap in the balustrade that was erected around an […]
Recycling firm fined after dad killed by shovel loader
A recycling company in Wales has been fined £300,000 after a father-of-two was killed by a shovel loader. Anthony Bilton, from Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, lost his life on 4 September 2019 when he was run over from behind by a Volvo shovel loader at Atlantic Recycling Limited’s Atlantic Ecopark site in Cardiff. The 59-year-old […]
BSR launches campaign for residents of high-rise buildings
High-rise building residents have more rights and protections than ever before. Residents can now check if their high-rise building is registered The Building Safety Regulator is there to drive forward safety standards across the built environment. The Building Safety Act 2022 is at the centre of building safety reforms in England. The new regulator is […]
Company and director fined after worker seriously injured
A company and its director have been fined after an employee was injured from a fall during the construction of eight new houses in Lichfield, Staffordshire. The man, employed by Alba Construction (Midlands) Limited, had been working in one of the new properties on the former site of The Greyhound Inn on Upper St John […]
Unregistered plumber handed suspended prison sentence
An unregistered plumber has received a suspended prison sentence after he carried out illegal gas work at a house in Peterborough. Anthony Rice, trading as Rice Plumbing and Oil Heating, attended the property on Edwalton Avenue on 31 January 2023 where he replaced a gas boiler and altered gas pipe work. However, Rice accidentally connected […]
Care home fined following death of vulnerable resident
A care home operator has been fined £400,000 for safety breaches, following the death of a vulnerable resident at a care home in Scotland. On the night of 16 December 2021, Susan Greens, a resident at Springfield Bank Care Home, could not be found on the premises. Following a search around the site in Bonnyrigg […]
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 […]
Roofing firm and company business partner sentenced following HSE investigations
Company fined for failings in two separate incidents. Two workers seriously injured after falling through roofs in separate incidents. Business partner at scaffolding firm sentenced following incident in Swansea. A roofing company has been fined a total of £881,000 after two workers were seriously injured during two separate incidents. Billy Hewitt, a worker at Mitie […]
Company fined as stunt performer sustains life-changing injuries during filming of Fast and Furious movie
A production company has been fined after a stunt performer was injured during the filming of Fast and Furious 9: The Fast Saga. Joe Watts, from Surrey, sustained life-changing injuries after he fell approximately 25 feet at Warner Bros. studios in Leavesden, Hertfordshire on 22 July 2019. He had been filming a fight scene for […]